Everlasting Feelings
by Hajimari
Summary: Post anime. Riku and Daisuke love each other, but when a new transfer student comes in between them, can their love survive? And will the shy Risa and Satoshi ever confess their feelings to each other? RikuxDaisuke Earlier RisaxSatoshi Current
1. New Student In Love

Disclaimer: I do not own DN Angel.

A/N: My first fanfic on DN Angel. Pairings are Riku and Daisuke, Risa and Satoshi. Hope you'll enjoy it! I will be using a few Japanese words too. The translation is below:

Okasan: Mother

Ohaiyo: Good morning

Gomenasai: Sorry

Aishiteru: I love you

Baka: Stupid, idiot

Summary: Set after DN Angel. Riku and Daisuke have confessed their feelings towards each other, but what happens when a new transfer student comes in between them, can their love survive? And will the shy Risa and Satoshi ever confess their feelings to each other? (RikuxDaisuke RisaxSatoshi)

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**_Chapter 1: New Student in Love_**

"Ohaiyo, Dai-chan." Emiko Niwa greeted her son as she looked at him rushing down from the stairs. "Kyu!" Wiz greeted Daisuke and smiled cutely at him.

"Ohaiyo, okasan," Daisuke greeted quickly, grabbed a piece of toast on the table and rushed for the door. "I'm off for school, okasan!" Daisuke shouted to her as he rushed for school, greeting everyone he know and crosses by. He knew he was going to be late for his meeting with Riku, but he hopes that with a little luck, he'll be early or at least, on time.

Finally, after a long run, Daisuke reached the train station and search desperately for Riku. Suddenly, someone from behind covered Daisuke's eyes. "Guess who?" The familiar voice said and Daisuke smiled and said, "Riku-san!" Riku uncovered Daisuke's eyes and sighed, "No matter how many times I try this trick, Niwa-kun always seems to get me right." "Of course," Daisuke said playfully, "If I don't even recognize your voice, how am I to be your boyfriend?" "Baka!" Riku stuck out her tongue at Daisuke, who was smiling at her.

"Anyway, good morning, Riku-san, aishiteru," Daisuke said and leaned forward to give Riku a kiss on her lips, which Riku returned. When they separated, they blushed and their fingers intertwined as they held hands and got ready to make their way into train, which was arriving.

When they reach school and into the class, they were greeted by Risa, who came earlier because she rode the bicycle to school that day. "Ohaiyo, Riku, Niwa-kun!" "Ohaiyo!" Daisuke and Riku replied in unison. "Where's Hiwatari-san?" Daisuke asked, scanning through the class for the blue-hair boy. "He's not here yet." Risa answered with a shade of deep red highlighted on her cheeks.

"That's not true," A voice said behind them, causing the trio's heads to turn towards the source of the voice. "Hiwatari-kun!" Risa greeted happily. "Ohaiyo." Satoshi greeted the group with a cheerful voice. Although it didn't sound cheerful, they knew he was happy because of the ending of all his problems, from Krad to his stepfather, but it wasn't his style to show his feelings except that cold attitude from his.

"Alright class, settle down," The familiar voice ordered the class, and they settled at their original seat, ready for lesson. "Before the lesson start, I would like to introduce a new student," The teacher announced and turned towards the door and said, "Please come in, Kinomoto-san!"

All at once, the door slid open, allowing a green-hair boy to enter. When he walked beside the teacher, he stopped and introduced himself, "Ohaiyo. My name is Kinomoto Miyu. I'm from Kyoto and I hope you will guide me along." Then he bowed. Kinomoto Miyu had short brown hair, amber eyes and was rather cute. _Daisuke's cuter_, Riku thought and smiled to herself as she saw her other female classmates having a "He's so cute!" look plastered on their faces and sighing heavily.

Miyu was assigned to seat on the table beside Daisuke. When Miyu completely settled down, lesson resumed as per normal. When break arrived, Riku, Risa, Satoshi and Saehara came to join Daisuke. They were talking happily and from the corner of Daisuke's eye, he saw Miyu all alone reading a book. _Since he's new here, and he's sitting beside me, I should introduce myself,_ Daisuke thought to himself.

"Hey, let's introduce ourselves to Miyu since he's new," Daisuke suggested and his friends agreed, besides, it wouldn't seem right to treat a new student with ignorance. "Konnichiwa. My name is Daisuke Niwa, nice to meet you." Daisuke said, and Miyu begin to raise his head when he heard the voice. He saw Daisuke and friends standing in front of his table and stood up to introduce himself properly, "I'm Kinomoto Miyu. Nice to meet you too."

"I'm Riku Harada and this is my sister, Risa Harada," Riku flashed a friendly smile as she introduced herself and Risa to Miyu.

"I'm Satoshi Hiwatari. Nice to meet you." Satoshi said, monotone.

"Nice to meet you all," Miyu said to his new friends, although he looked at Riku most of the time. Riku was unaware of this as she hooked her arm onto Daisuke's lovingly, but Daisuke had noticed it although he didn't thought much of it, besides, even if Miyu had really like Riku like what seems like love at first sight, Riku was still Daisuke's and he wasn't letting her go.

_Miyu's POV_

Those eyes, those alluring amber eyes. They seemed so gentle and kind. My heart is beating faster than normal. Is this what they meant by love at first sight?

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End of chapter 1. I thought this wasn't very well done. But what can I say, I write really bad at introductions. And for those of you who thinks I am making the story very rush, I actually wanted to make it this way so that I have no need to make Riku and Miyu go through a range of problems because it will only seems that Miyu is more worthy of Riku and Daisuke, and I don't want it that way. Anyway, please R&R and thanks for reading!


	2. Riku's Reflection

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: So excited for this story so I updated quick. There are Japanese words in this chapter and the translations below:

Daijoubu: Don't worry, I'm fine!

Genki: Very lively

Watashi wa: I am

Minna: Everyone

Hope you'll enjoy this chapter!

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**_Chapter 2: Riku's Reflection_**

_Riku's POV_

I have to kind of admit that Miyu guy was sort of cute, though he cannot compare to Daisuke-kun! I think I'm speaking more like Risa when she was crazy about Dark.

Dark.

Funny as it sounds, but a year has already past and I'm surprised that Risa had gotten over Dark. I thought she would never since she loves Dark so much. Oh well, I guess things can never change back to the way they were before, right? I still remember all the incidents with Dark so vividly, it seems that through all the teasing, Dark had proved to be a good friend to Daisuke-kun, and we were all disappointed when Dark was sealed away. Although I was thinking he was a pervert and I disliked him at first, it seems my attitude towards him have changed after Daisuke-kun told Risa and me about him being Dark and all those stuff. I thought about the things about Dark, the 'stories' Daisuke told me when Dark was in him and about the 'tradition'. By what Daisuke said, I thought maybe Dark was a good person after all, it's just that I do not know him well enough.

But now, I understood everything, and for the past one year, my love with Daisuke-kun deepened, and countless times, he told me not to like another guy because he felt that I was his one and only 'Sacred Maiden'. I should have told him that too since he was quite popular with the girls! I want to be his 'Sacred Maiden' and I'm not joking because when I'm with him, I felt true love, and not some stupid high school crush on the cutest guy in school.

Before disappearing, Mio-chan told me to live happily with Daisuke-kun, and from what Daisuke-kun later told me, Freedert from 'Ice and Dark', told him that to love his love ones, he must persevere and survive. After so many strange encounters, so much hurt and pain, I realized that for Daisuke-kun, I must survive and trust him always because I know he will always protect me, just like what he promised me when I fell off the bridge on the day which it was supposed to be the final battle between Dark and Krad. He embraced me tight and said that he would protect me.

"Riku? Earth to Riku!" I heard Risa's voice and I immediately regain my composure. I saw her casting me a confused look and she asked, "Are you okay, Riku? You looked really spaced out there for a minute,"

"Are you sick?" I turned to Daisuke-kun, who was asking me with a voice filled with worry and it was written on his face too. I shook my head and smiled, saying, "Daijoubu! Watashi wa genki desu!" I always hate to make Daisuke-kun worry. Relief and a smile spread across Daisuke-kun's face and said, "I'm glad,"

From in front of me, I saw Kinomoto-san starring at me. I was confused and asked him, "Why are you starring at me like that, something on my face?" I saw his face fired up and he turned away, saying "Nothing."

Then Risa thought of something and said, "Ne, minna. Want to have a study session this afternoon? I really have trouble with my studies nowadays and I need help," I was really surprised and said, "How could you? You always score straight 'A's like Hiwatari-kun! If it's anyone, it's us who should need help!"

"That was last time. And if you haven't notice, I had 15 marks over 20 marks for the latest test we received." Risa snapped and made a face.

I saw Daisuke-kun smiling and said, "It's okay, Riku. Let's just go for the study session, ne?" I relented and smiled, knowing that I would get to spend more time with Daisuke-kun, besides, I also needed serious help on my Biology.

"Hey, Saehara-san, want to join us?" Risa turned to our friend, who in turn replied excitedly, "Sorry, but I have some serious scoop on something. It's tough being a reporter, you know," And he sighed. I was thinking that was so sarcastic, but what can I say, it's Saehara-san for heaven's sake.

"What about you, Kinomoto-san? Interested?" I suddenly remembered our new friend and asked him politely by his last name since I wasn't that familiar with him, not yet.

"Gomen ne, minna. I've got tuition today so I'm unable to join in." Kinomoto-san replied.

"That's okay, you no need to apologize. We understand." Daisuke said to Kinomoto-san, then he faced Hiwatari-kun, "Ne, Satoshi-kun, you'll go, ne?"

Hiwatari-kun shrugged and said, "I don't have much choice, do I? I'm going to have to teach you all, right?"

I saw Risa rolling her eyes and snapped, "You don't have to make out so much of yourself, you know that, Hiwatari-kun?" "I'm just stating a fact," Hiwatari-kun retorted calmly.

I saw Risa flushed with anger, and I giggled a bit. I know in actual fact, Risa doesn't seem to think Hiwatari-kun as some emotionless kid who thinks highly of himself, although there are times he act like that. In fact, even though Risa didn't tell me anything, I could sense that she like Hiwatari-kun more and more, it's just that sometimes, she said something to contradict Hiwatari-kun so people won't ever guess that she likes Hiwatari-kun, not in a million years. But I knew. After all, I'm her older twin sister. Besides, I was having a hunch that Risa thought that she wasn't a good competitor for Hiwatari-kun's heart, since he was a popular figure in school and girls die to get a date with him.

Oh well, I shall wish Risa good luck, and I shall have a talk with her one of these days to confirm my theory, but I think this time, I'll be correct, completely correct compared to my Biology report.

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I wrote this chapter mainly on Riku's reflection and the study session that will be very important in the next chapter. I'm going to try and make a lot of Satoshi and Risa moments on next chapter! I'm not sure if this chapter is well written but I hope it is. Thank you for reading and please review!


	3. Contradiction

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N. Angel.

A/N: Thank you for those you reviewed on the previous chapter! Although there weren't many reviews, it's okay since I'm writing D.N. Angel fanfic the very first time. I hope you readers would enjoy this chapter! By the way, **PLEASE READ ENDING A/N FOR CLEARING DOUBTS ON THIS CHAPTER!!!**

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_**Chapter 3: Contradiction**_

The day ended as fast as it begins, but for students, school ended like it lasted a few centuries. When the teacher announced for dismissal of students, Risa, like all the other students, were anxious to get out of the classroom. The students and teacher greeted politely and after the teacher left, students packed their bags and quickly scurried out of the classroom. By this time, Riku, Risa, Daisuke, Satoshi and their new friend, Miyu, were at the back of the class, discussing the activities in the afternoon for a bit, careful not to block the way of the backdoor.

"I'm sorry you couldn't join us for the study session, Miyu," Daisuke said with a slight smile on his face.

"It's okay," Miyu replied, "Besides, I was thinking that today's tuition would be a great opportunity to study for tomorrow's Math test with my tuition teacher."

"That old witch Miss Rino, fancy giving us a test when she just gave one yesterday," Risa groaned.

"I thought Math was your best subject, Risa," Riku said with a hint of taunting in her voice.

"Are you mocking me or what?" Risa snapped, "You well know I failed in that Math test last week!"

Riku sighed and rolled her eyes, muttering a "Whatever"; sometimes, it's best not to retort Risa because she will always think of ways to talk back. No wonder she is in the ELDD (English Language Drama and Debate), she could always find ways to talk back, and this especially useful in debating, although when it comes to drama, she's…well, not exactly hopeless but not good either.

"Well, guys, I need to go now. My tuition lesson is starting in twenty minutes." Miyu explained.

"Okay. See you tomorrow!" Daisuke said, and the group waved their hands at Miyu, meaning goodbye. Miyu did the same and left the group and classroom by the backdoor.

"Okay, so where are we going for the study session?" Daisuke questioned his group.

"How about my place?" Risa exclaimed excitedly.

"Impossible! The next minute when we are going to study, you'll be ordering your butler to get you this and that! Evidently, we would not have any time for studying, since your "calling" would take up almost the whole afternoon!" Satoshi pointed out flatly.

"No, I won't!" Risa said angrily to Satoshi with a voice that hinted she was pissed off and a deep crimson crawling over her cheeks.

"Okay, guys. Break it up!" Riku tried to make peace between them as she saw Risa was over her top and Satoshi being oblivious to her expression.

"So, what do you suggest? Your place?" Risa said, slightly taunting Satoshi and ignoring Riku's try for making peace between the two bickering teens.

"I don't mind, actually," Satoshi replied curtly, making his friends surprised; normally, Satoshi would never invite people to his house, but this time, he just did.

"Okay, then it's decided. We shall go Satoshi's house," Daisuke concluded and Riku nodded her head in approval, flashing a smile. Only Risa seemed to be uninterested and pissed off; she had just been "defeated" by Satoshi, how else would she be happy? Muttering a "Whatever", she lifted her head up again and said irritably, "Hey! Are we going or not? Get a move!" and she walked towards the door and ahead of the others.

"What's up with her?" Daisuke asked.

"It's just her temper. She'll clear up in a bit!" Riku said and flashed an innocent smile at the two friends; Daisuke tilted her head in confusion while Satoshi looked away like we don't care at all. Riku knew about Risa's temper and the reason why she respond to Satoshi that way.

"Let's just catch up with her. I bet she is way ahead of us!" Daisuke exclaimed.

"Impossible!" Satoshi said, earning confused looks from Riku and Daisuke, "The most she go is only the entrance of the school. She doesn't know where my house is, does she?" Walking towards the door, he turned and said with a stern voice, "Let's get going. The later we go to my house, the less we would study." Riku and Daisuke walked behind Satoshi as he led the way.

When they reach the school gates, what Satoshi said had been true; Risa was standing at the gates and flashed them a smile, while in Satoshi's case, she shot him daggers. Satoshi just smirked at her, and Risa could feel her temperature rising.

When they were on the journey to Satoshi's house, Satoshi and Daisuke walked in front of the two girls. Risa was eyeing Satoshi evilly and Riku just giggled a bit; seeing the look on her sister's face was entertaining.

Risa thought, _That idiot!_ _It's true I like him but his attitude really pissed me off! He always starts it and whatever I say, he'll just retort!_

Suddenly, her expression softened as she looked partly at his adorable face as he talked to the red head boy beside him.

_But he's just so cute! Thinking about him makes me so…excited! If only his attitude would change a bit, then he'll be the perfect guy! Although I wouldn't mind friendly bickers once in a while..._

Risa was so absorbed in her own thoughts, she didn't notice that Riku was eyeing her all this while. She had wanted to play matchmaking for the two, but then decided that it'll be better if nature take it's own course.

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Sorry for the study session I promised earlier, I had decided to save that for next chapter. For this chapter, I wanted to create a "cute" moment between Risa and Satoshi.

Now, for clearing doubts…

I know that in chapter 1, it seems that Risa was crazy about Satoshi and that's true, but in Risa's mind, she was trying to be friendly but not that close to swooning-mode. Although Risa thinks that Satoshi is always against her, she still likes him in her own way, but does not express them openly. Her bickering with Satoshi also stops people from thinking she likes him, and this helps a lot. (There would be chapter in future about how Risa thinks of Satoshi and all those stuff. So bear with me until then!)

Thank you for reading and please review! I noticed that are quite many people reading but not reviewing! Please review so you can give suggestions and feedbacks for my story and tell me where to improve on! Thank you and I hope you enjoyed it!


	4. Study Session

Disclaimer: I do not own DN Angel.

A/N: Thank you for those who reviewed previously! I love you guys! Anyway, here's the fourth chapter. Enjoy!

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_**Chapter 4: Study Session**_

Finally, after a long walk, the four friends reached Satoshi's house. Daisuke, Riku and Risa gasped as they saw the building; it was big mansion with Victorian interior designs on the outside. Who knows what there will be when they go in!

"Stop looking at it as if it came from Pluto," Satoshi snapped, "It's just a mansion. Harada-san lived in one too, right?"

"We do live in a mansion," Risa answered, "But this is the first mansion we saw that is this huge!" It was true to what Risa had just said; even though there were mansions in Azumano (A/N: I assumed that's what the place called since their school is called Azumano High School) but they had never seen any bigger, or the same size, as this! Satoshi sighed and took out a card, placing it at the scanner beneath the address plate, which is at one of the two pillars supporting the gate. A soft 'beep' sounded as the card came into contact with the scanner, and immediately, the tall gates opened. Nobody questioned about the security measures; Satoshi's father was a chief inspector in the police force, so it was only natural that such security measures existed in the Hiwatari household.

"Come on, people," Satoshi told the three friends, "We don't have all day." After saying that, he walked into the mansion, with Daisuke, Riku and Risa following him closely behind. When they reached the door, Satoshi unlocked the door and went in. "I'll show you to my room," Satoshi said, not stopping or turning back to them. The group walked up a trail of circular stairway, which leads to a second storey of the mansion. Satoshi continued guiding them to the second room from the stairway and turned the knob of the door, revealing a small and cozy, clean and tidy room. Although the size of the room was small, it was a huge surprise on how Satoshi managed to placed his queen-sized bed, a white chair with a structure of feathers at the high end of the chair, a rather big timber with the shape of a square and a wardrobe made of pine, including some other furniture and electronics.

"No offense, Hiwatari-kun," Risa began, "But this room is way to small compared to the size of the room you should be deserving since you lived in such a big mansion." "I like living in a small room. It makes me more secure. Besides, the room was actually kind of big, it's just the amount of furniture and other stuff that made the room look small," Satoshi explained, leaving Daisuke, Riku and Risa nodding in response. "What would you all like to drink? Or perhaps something to eat?" Satoshi asked. "Orange juice please," Risa requested, while Daisuke stick with Coke and Riku a glass of Chocolate Latte, which Satoshi suggested since she had nothing in mind. As Satoshi went downstairs to get their requested beverage, leaving the remaining three friends to stay in the room, exploring the room. Risa was taking out a small notebook from a bookcase, when suddenly the door burst open.

"I got your drinks, everyone," Satoshi said, holding a tray of three tall glasses of drinks. "What do you think you're doing?" Satoshi asked Risa, narrowing his eyes at her. "I was just taking a look at this notebook," Risa said, holding the medium-sized booklet for Satoshi to see. Satoshi pulled the notebook out of Risa's hand roughly and said, "There is something I wrote inside that is private," Risa was shocked, but nonetheless nodded in understanding, respecting his decision of not letting her read the contents of the notebook. Besides, she didn't want to invade other's privacy. Wanting to break the intense atmosphere in the room, Daisuke said, "Shall we get on to studying now?" Riku nodded at Daisuke and faced the other two, "It's getting kind of late now. Besides, I'm leaving at six."

"So early? But why?" Risa asked.

"I'm having a Lacrosse club meeting at six in the Wind Café with some of the team leaders," Riku explained, a smiled spreading across her face. "You're so lucky," Risa envied, "That café just opened recently and I haven't got a chance to go there. I heard that their food there is superb!" Riku nodded and said, "That's why, on the other hand, I'm glad I was going,"

The Wind Café was a new and recently opened café. It's name come from the wind turbines that is located near the café itself. Also, you can see a clear view of the wind turbines and it makes an excellent sight.

"I can't stay long either," Daisuke spoke up, and the threesome looked at him with a questioning look on their faces. "My mother asked me to return home at six too, but I have no idea why," Daisuke explained, clearing their doubts. "What time would you be staying until, Risa?" Riku asked.

"I didn't thought you guys have any activities, so I was thinking of leaving here at nine," Risa said, and the others nodded their head in response. "Now, can we get back to studying?" Satoshi said, leaving the others surprised that he spoke at last, but they didn't question anything.

Getting ready for studying, the group took out their books and pencil cases and each person sat at one side of the square table in the room. Questions and answers filled the room, and occasionally, there would be some talking when the group is taking their break from all those studying. Finally, six o'clock arrived and the couple, Daisuke and Riku, left the place, waving and saying goodbyes, with the exception of Riku and Risa, who said 'See you later', it was understandable since their sisters. After they left, Satoshi and Risa went back up to Satoshi's room and continue to study.

"Hey, Satoshi," Risa said, gaining Satoshi's attention, "I'm not being nosey or anything, but where is your father?"

"He's at work. Why the question, suddenly?" Satoshi answered before asking his question.

"I'm just curious," Risa smiled and said. Turning back to her book, she muttered, "It must be lonely, isn't it?"

"What did you say?" Satoshi asked, evidently not being able to hear what Risa had said since she muttered. Risa shook her head, smiled and said, "Nothing. Let's get back to our studies,"

The night passes slowly without any answers as to why it was. To Satoshi and Risa, it just was…

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Sorry for the little moments I wrote about for Satoshi and Risa! I just needed to get some things right before proceeding to those scenes. But hey, they're alone at last, so look forward to next chapter! I also apologize for my bad language, it's getting bad to worse! Anyway, I hope you enjoyed and please R&R! Thank you for reading!


	5. A Night Together

Disclaimer: I do not own DN Angel.

A/N: Sorry for not updating for so long. Here's chapter five and as I promised, there will be lots and lots of Risa and Satoshi moments, maybe I'll make some fluffs too (I'm thinking about it as I write). I hope you'll enjoy it! But before that, here's shout-out:

Syaoran-San: I'm not going to make Daisuke steal anything because Dark is already gone. Besides, making Daisuke steal will place more doubts on him from Riku.

Note: Doesn't mean I don't do a shout-out to you means I'm ignoring you. But the above shout-out is just to answer the question. I still need my fans very much :)

**Also, I don't care the heck about how the characters address each other!!! So please take note! I only take note of the addressing formalities in POVs or in OCs case like Miyu's.**

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_**Chapter 5: A Night Together**_

As dawn approaches, the Sun setting on the thin line of the horizon, the sky slowly became dark, but the room Risa and Satoshi were in was illuminated with the bright ceiling light. Risa was now draped with blankets from Satoshi's bed since she was cold due to the low temperature the air-conditioner had sat on. Satoshi had offered to lower the temperature, but even though he did, she still felt cold. The two friends sat next to each other as they studied, did their homework and discussed various subjects related to the Mathematics test to be assigned the next day.

"Risa, why don't we get supper?" Satoshi suggested.

"Why not dinner?"

"Because it's already 10 o'clock?" Satoshi pointed out.

"Oh my gosh!" Risa said anxiously, "I told Riku I'll be home at nine! I'll call home and tell her I'll be home at eleven." Satoshi nodded and Risa went outside, taking her handphone along with her to call home.

"Why aren't you home yet?" Riku practically screamed at the other line as she realized the caller was Risa.

"Sorry, Riku. Satoshi and I have been studying and we've been ignorant to the time," Risa apologized, and with a reason.

"Apology accepted. So what time will you be home?"

"Around eleven? Is that fine?" Risa asked with a secret desire to gain her sister's permission.

After a few moments of silence, Riku, at the other line, sighed and said, "All right. But be absolutely sure to return home at eleven, or you shall face your wrath."

Risa gave a nervous laugh and replied with an okay. Then the two lines disconnected, leaving Risa to return to the room to see Satoshi changed from his school uniform to a black vest and coat (A/N: The one given to him by Daisuke at the end of the last episode of the anime) and a black pair of long pants.

"Black is your colour, huh?" Risa said after realizing that her friend was dressed all in black.

"I like black," Satoshi replied curtly.

"I see," Risa said as she packed her books, pencil case and notebooks into her bag, getting ready to leave. As she was stepping out of the door, Satoshi thrust her pink jacket with a hood.

"Wear this. You don't want people to look at you ridiculously like you've only just been released from school, do you?" Satoshi asked as Risa realized that she was still wearing her school uniform. Risa gratefully accepted the pink jacket and thanked him. As she pulled a sleeve through her arm, she asked, "There's pink in your wardrobe?" "It was given to me by a girl," Satoshi explained and Risa understood immediately; Satoshi is very popular in school and girls always present him with gifts, most of the gifts being pink because it is a colour that represents love or crushes.

After Risa wore the pink jacket, the two friends left the Hiwatari house and walked to the place where they were going to have their supper.

"Where are we going for supper?" Risa asked.

"A small shop owned by my father's friends. It is known that they opened until very late. My father always go there after late work so he knows," Satoshi explained.

The route there proved to be long, but nonetheless, it was fruitful since the shop was indeed open for business and there was a wide variety of food to choose from. Risa was almost spoiled for choice but somehow, she settled with a meal of tempura udon, a small cup of Japanese salad, a large plate of assorted sashimi and sushi, a chocolate gateau for dessert and a tall glass of iced vanilla latte with whipped cream on top. Satoshi got a simple meal of soba, vanilla ice-cream and a medium size coke. Satoshi didn't know what Risa ordered until the food came. Satoshi and the shop owner were surprised at the small girl's appetite. The shop owner walked away without any questions, thinking that it would be rude to question his guests.

"Don't you need to watch your weight?" Satoshi asked as he saw that Risa had already started slurping her udon, "You are going to be bigger if you continue with meals like that."

"No, I won't," Risa pouted as she protested, "I always eat this much at home."

"But won't you grow fat?" Satoshi attempted his question again.

"Nope," Risa said, brightening at the thought and question, "My metabolism rate is amazing!"

without anymore retorts from Satoshi, the supper proved to be a peaceful one. Although Risa's attempts to start a conversation with Satoshi – being the quiet person he is – was futile, it lowered the level of intensity between the two of them.

After the meals were finished and to Satoshi's amazement, Risa had finished her food clean without any of them been left uneaten. The two decided to leave the shop.

"I'm taking a bus home now," Risa said, "It's quite a long way home so I'm not walking by any chance. Also, I wouldn't want to trouble my butler since it's so late now."

"I never thought you had any sincerity to think for your butler," Satoshi stated, being completely surprised at Risa being so thoughtful.

"Are you suggesting something?" Risa said angrily.

"Nothing," Satoshi said blankly, "Then, see you tomorrow." The two friends bided each other goodbye and went separate ways.

Suddenly, a van honked many times, prompting Satoshi to turn back and look and the honking stopped. To his horror, he saw Risa laying on the road with the driver of the van on her other side. There were no other obstructions or vehicles since it was very late in the small and peaceful town. Satoshi ran to take a look at Risa and asked the driver what happened.

"I had no idea," The driver replied, "I was just driving when I saw this girl stumbling to get to the other side of the road. Then I honked to get her out of the way. But only that she didn't, she fell and it was a miracle that I managed to hit the brakes in time; or else the worst scenario would happen. But I swear I didn't hit her. By the way, where are you taking her?" The driver asked as he noticed Satoshi carrying Risa.

"She's my friend," Satoshi explained, "I'm taking her back home. Go ahead and continue to drive your van."

"But what if you do inappropriate actions," The driver eyed Satoshi suspiciously.

"I'm a police officer," Satoshi said, showing him his pass and left the driver apologizing and stump for words. Satoshi could understand by his shocked expression; he was thinking of how such a young boy could enter the police force. But Satoshi didn't care what the driver think. _Let him think what he want_, Satoshi thought. The most important thing to him right now is to get Risa back to his house, since she had said that it was long way to her house.

After carrying to his house and into his room, Satoshi laid Risa down gently on his bed and called the Harada household. After attempts after attempts on calling, Satoshi gave up when nobody answered. He figured that Riku and their butler had already slept. Instead of calling in hopes that the two people would wake up from the noisy ringing sound, Satoshi though better and decided to leave a voice message as their phone had this special function.

_"Please leave a voice message after the 'beep',"_ The operator said and a 'beep' came afterwards. 

"Hello, Riku," Satoshi started saying, "Risa fainted in the middle of the streets after supper and I took her home. I'll check what's wrong with her and take care of her, so please don't worry. Risa and I might or might not come to school tomorrow. If you don't see us tomorrow, please tell the teacher for us. Bye now."

Satoshi put the phone down lightly and went back to his room to check on Risa. As Risa seemed to be asleep, Satoshi switched off the small lamp on the bedside table. He adjusted Risa properly and took off her shoes, turned on the air-conditioner and pulled the covers over her. after much examination, Satoshi realized that Risa had been running a fever and took her temperature with a thermometer. After confirming this, Satoshi woke Risa slightly and gave her penicillin (A/N: The type of drug for Panadol) for killing the bacteria inside her.

As Risa awoke slightly and asked what happened, Satoshi answered softly, "I'll explain to you tomorrow. Go to sleep now. You must be tired." Risa nodded and thanked him with a smile, returning to sleep after taking her medicine. Satoshi then took an ice pack from his fridge and returned to Risa, placing the cooling item on Risa's forehead and strapped it to prevent it from falling out of place.

Realizing that it was already late and midnight is arriving, Satoshi took extra mattress and blankets from his storage space and laid them on the floor beside the bed where Risa was sleeping on. As he lay down and wanted to sleep, he couldn't help but worry about Risa. Instead of wasting time, Satoshi stood from his mattress and sat on a chair beside Risa, watching her and reading a book under the bedside lamp.

As he rested his eyes from reading the book, he rested his head on the bed and thought about Risa and her fever. He suddenly thought of Risa being cold at the beginning and even as he tuned down the temperature of the air-conditioner, Risa was still cold. He thought that maybe it was his fault that she got sick because of the strong air-conditioner.

Thinking that it was useless pondering over it, he secretly hoped that Risa would be well the next day and smiled as he watched her peaceful sleeping face. If only a doctor worked this late, he was sure to take Risa to him. Too bad there wasn't one and he can only hope that penicillin could do the work. He studied medicine for a while once in university and learned that penicillin could help with fevers and other sickness; penicillin could also be antibiotics but a weaker dose. Besides, if it was too strong, it could hurt her internal organs.

Hoping that Risa would get well the next day, Satoshi drifted off to sleep with his head still resting beside Risa.

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Was that a good moment between the two? I'm sorry I made Risa sick but this would show what Satoshi is willing to do for Risa. Next chapter would also have quite a fair amount of Risa and Satoshi moments! So look forward! Thank you for reading and please review! I hope you enjoyed it!


	6. Accompany of Each Other

Disclaimer: I do not own DN Angel.

A/N: Thank you for those who reviewed for the previous chapter. I hope this chapter would be promising to you guys out there. Oh, and there wouldn't be much couples' moments here because this is more of a **'theory chapter'**. Enjoy!

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_**Chapter 6: Accompany of Each Other**_

_Risa's POV_

I started to stir in my bed as the sunlight streamed through the windows. Blocking the sunlight from my face, I looked at the alarm clock on the table to see what time is it. Surprisingly, there wasn't any alarm clock. It was so strange. I got up from the bed and looked at the surroundings; neat and quite big.

"You're awake?" A low voice said. I turned and saw a blue hair boy getting his head up from the bed. I was surprised at who I saw.

"Hiwatari-kun!" I shouted unexpectedly. "Why are you in my house? And in my room?" I asked.

"Excuse me?" Hiwatari-kun said, rising an eyebrow. "But this isn't your room. We're at my house."

"Eh!" I shouted in surprise. I look around the room and tried to remember every single detail about the previous night. The study session, the supper and…

"I don't remember anything after we went separate ways after eating together." I said as I scratched my head in confusion.

"That's because you fainted in the middle of the road." Satoshi said in his monotone voice. "You took me the trouble to bring you back here. And then rested here for the night."

"Riku." I panicked aloud suddenly. "Riku is going to punish me! I didn't call home last night!"

"Don't worry, I left her a message last night." Hiwatari-kun explained. I heaved a sigh of relief and then I looked at the time.

"Are we still going to school?" I asked and pointed to the clock. "It is almost 8 and lesson starts in five minutes."

"Does it really matter? Even if we get a taxi, we still won't get to school on time." He pointed out..

"So that means we're taking a day off from today?" I said, hiding my excitement and happiness on the thought of it.

"You seem a little too happy about it, aren't you?" Hiwatari-kun smirked at me and I knew immediately that he had seen through me.

"No, I'm not!" I protested. Then, Hiwatari-kun did something unexpected.

"What…What are you doing?" I stammered and blushed as he placed his palm on my forehead.

"Nothing. It seemed that the fever subsided." He explained and took his hand away.

"I had a fever last night?" I said slowly.

"Yeah. You fainted and I realized that because your body was burning." I showed my understanding with a nod. "But you seemed to be okay now." I saw him smile – or was it a smirk? – at me.

"So what shall we do now?" I asked, scanning the room for entertainment of some sort. "We got the whole morning free for ourselves."

"What do you suggest?"

"Here's the idea: I go home and change then we can hang out together." I suggested.

"Why am I being involved?"

"Because you are the only friend who I know is not in school." I reasoned. "Besides, what have you got to lose?"

"My sanity?" Hiwatari-kun suggested.

"Fine, let me rephrase that. What can you do alone?" I said annoyingly at his previous statement.

"A lot of things. Playing the computer, watching television, take a walk in the park, painting at home, go to the library and –" Hiwatri-kun said thoughtfully, trying to think of more activities.

"Those are so boring and you get to do it everyday!" I said, feeling ridiculous about his ideas.

After much debating, I talked him into a morning of shopping (apparently, Hiwatari-kun made me promised not to carry my shopping bags) and watching 'Death Note' (A/N: I do not own this) which I longed for so long.

"I see a light and cherubs and angels are inviting me with open arms." I heard Hiwatari-kun mutter sarcastically but I ignored his offensive comment. Besides, the activities we were doing that morning was too exciting to be spoiled by a meaningless sentence.

'Death Note', here I come!

-------------X--------------

_With Daisuke and Riku_

It was break time at Azumano High and a couple sat on a bench under the shade of the tree.

"Here, Daisuke. I made this bento (A/N: Lunch box in Japanese but thought 'bento' was a more appropriate word) for you this morning. Try it!" Riku said happily and handed a lunch box wrapped with a red cloth.

"Thanks a lot, Riku." Daisuke said gratefully. "Whatever you cook, it must be great!" Riku blushed at the compliment and mutter a thanks.

"Can I join you?" A meek voice asked. Daisuke and Riku turned to the person and saw that it was Miyu.

"Of course. You don't mind, do you, Riku?" Daisuke turned towards Riku.

"Of course I don't mind, why would I?" Riku said with a steady voice and forced a smile. Truth was, she was planning to spend the break with Daisuke alone. But instead, an unexpected intruder came, not that Riku really mind so much. Miyu sat beside Daisuke and complimented on the bento in Daisuke hands.

"I made it for Daisuke." Riku explained.

"I see." Miyu said.

_Was it just me, or did he sound kind of disappointed?_ Riku thought.

The three friends talked as they enjoyed their food.

"By the way, Riku, where's Risa? I didn't see her in class today." Miyu asked as he took a bite on his sushi.

"Now that you mention it, I noticed that too. Satoshi also didn't attend school today." Daisuke nodded and added on.

"Well, you see, Risa suddenly got a fever and is at Satoshi's place." Riku explained. "Satoshi left me a voice message to inform me of it. He also noted that he and Risa might not be coming to school today. So I guess Risa is still at his place resting."

Then, the bell rang shrilly through the school, informing the students to get back to class in ten minutes' time.

"I'll make a move first." Miyu said and got up from his seat. "I promised Miss Mizuki to bring up the books to class." Daisuke and Riku waved goodbye to Miyu as he disappeared from their view.

"Was it nice? The bento." Riku asked.

"It was great! As expected from Riku." Daisuke said with a smile.

"Thank you. Let's get to class, shall we?" Riku asked and was replied with a nod. And the two walked up to class, with Daisuke taking the initiative to hold Riku's hand. Riku smiled secretly as her fingers gently slipped through Daisuke's.

"Say, Riku," Daisuke said out of the blue and Riku turned her head into his direction, looking at him.

"What is it?"

"Shall we…go on a date this Saturday?" Daisuke blushed as he said this. Riku turned away and said, "Of course." The two lovers blushed and smiled in their hearts. Although they had been attached together for six months or more now, they were still shy towards each other; with all the blushing and the heartbeat going on. They never complained; it was their theory that this allow them to be sure that they still like each other.

Their grip on each other hands tightened slightly as they walked to class in silence.

But the silence wasn't tense. It was reassuring and cheerful.

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I can understand your disappointment in this chapter but the inspiration strike while I was watching some show on TV. I apologize for this boring chapter once again. I hoped you enjoyed it and in the next chapter, it would be the continuation of Risa and Satoshi's morning together and Miyu confessing to Riku! I just didn't have much mood continuing it from here.

Look forward to it! Please review and thank you for reading!


	7. Wrong Timing

Disclaimer: I do not own DN Angel.

A/N: This chapter is taking a lot of patience out of me because I'm writing in WordPad, which, unfortunately unlike Microsoft Word, doesn't have any spelling checking. So there might be a lot of spelling and grammer mistakes. Sorry!

Also, I would like to give shout-outs to reviewers from now on. Why? Because I feel that it'll be so weird to ignore your readers at times, haha. So here goes:

**seehuey:** I know I already PM you but I would also like other people to take note. Miyu is actually a guy and I actually took the name from Miyu Irino who voice cast as Daisuke in the anime. I had assumed that Miyu was the name and Irino is the surname.

**ffgirlmoonie:** I'm so sorry because this chapter will not be about Daisuke and Riku's date, if that's what you are referring to. But it will be about what Satoshi and Risa are doing together on this 'date' of theirs. And yes, I know you dislike Miyu (from your review on one of the chapters) but in this chapter, Miyu will be confessing to Riku.

**k i n d h a l o:** Thanks for your compliment on my writing. :)

**Anonymous:** Thank you for considering my mood. It is very annoying to write a chapter if you don't have the mood. I hope you like this chapter.

**Anonymous:** Thank you for reviewing! I shall try to maintain my story like this, or better still, I will try to improve it!

**NOW LET'S GET ON WITH THE STORY :)

* * *

**

_**Chapter 7: Wrong Timing**_

"That was a great movie, wasn't it?" Risa said excitedly as she walked out of cinema, ahead of Satoshi.

"It was okay." Satoshi replied curtly. Risa turned back and pouted, "How can you say it's okay? It was fantastic!" Then once again, Risa returned into her dream-world as she replayed the scenes of the movie in the back of her mind. Satoshi sighed; how could he, Hiwatari Satoshi, be so easily persuaded by Risa to spend a day with her? Even though he knew that he would not be carrying Risa's shopping bags, he rather spend a quiet day at home creating a masterpiece of art.

"Satoshi?" Risa called him and almost immediately, he was snapped out of his thoughts and faced the girl. "Penny for your thoughts?" She asked.

"It was nothing." Satoshi lied as they walk on to who-knows-where. "Where exactly is our next destination, Harada-san?"

"I don't know." Risa said without any hesitation, only joy in her voice. On the other hand, Satoshi raised an eyebrow.

"Let me rephrase the question. Where are we going?" Satoshi tried again.

"I told you. I don't know." Risa said impatiently and glared at Satoshi, clearly, she was being annoyed with him repeatedly asking the same question. "We're just walking around until I see something that interest me."

"Girls..." Satoshi said quietly and the two continued to walk around the small town. As they walked around, turning with each curve, Risa finally saw something that caught her attention. Her face lit with a smile and she ran ahead of Satoshi to take a closer look.

"Wow..." Risa pressed her face lightly on the display window. Satoshi came to her side shortly after and look around the stall through the same window. Surprisingly, Satoshi found himself showing interest in the stall; the expensive and renowned paintbrushes, the high quality canvas, oil paints of every colour, and so many other things.

"I never thought you would show any interest in an art store." Satoshi said with genuine surprise.

"Come on! Let's go in!" Risa said excitedly, taking Satoshi's arm and dragged him with much haste. When they entered the store, Satoshi noticed that Risa was going to one corner where wood craft (A/N: Is that what they call it?) of every shape were.

"I didn't know you like these type of things." Satoshi mused.

"Nope. But this is really nice." Risa said as she turned back to face Satoshi, holding up a piece of heart-shaped wood. Flower patterns were also carved at the near-edge of the wood, making a pretty border.

"It's just a piece of wood." Satoshi raised his eyebrow.

"Different people have different interests." Risa reasoned with a small angry pout and turned back to the cabinet, selecting a few pieces to purchase.

"You know, Harada, we should be getting back to your house." Satoshi said, looking at his watch.

"Why?"

"Because school is ending soon. You don't want people coming to us asking why we were absent when we are perfectly healthy." Satoshi pointed out. "They might think we are playing truant."

"You're just afraid that your fanclub girls might chase you." Risa said.

"Well, partly." Satoshi said quietly, careful not to let Risa hear about his fear. He shuddered at the thought of what Risa said, if that were to happen, he would have a hard time leaving. Who knows what else these obsessed fangirls might do?

"Are you done?" Satoshi asked impatiently.

"I can't make up my mind." Risa said as she examined the two pieces which she was holding. Then she straightened up with a disappointed look and faced Satoshi.

"Maybe we'll come back some other day. Let's go." Risa said with disappointed in her voice.

Satoshi didn't need her to say it twice. Immediately, he made a beeline to the exit, leaving the shop with Risa. But before they leave, Satoshi secretly stole a glance at the shop, then turned to the front again, deep in thought.

"Shall we have an ice-cream?" Risa asked and pointed to a small shop with an attractive life-sized plastic ice-cream by the side. "It's so hot today." Satoshi sighed and said, "What flavour do you want?"

"I want chocolate, vanilla, strawberry ripple, mocha, brownie - " Then, she was being interrupted rudely by Satoshi.

"Harada, I mean flavour, not flavours." Satoshi said.

"But one flavour is so dull. It's more exciting to have more flavours." Risa reasoned.

"What if the whole ice-cream drop?"

"Then I'll - " Risa was stumped for words. She knew that that many flavours on a cone would spell trouble. With a sigh, Risa thought hard before deciding to have a milk flavour one.

"You can wait here." Satoshi said.

"Why?"

"Because you might not be able to control yourself when you see the signboard full of flavours." With that, he went off, not giving Risa a chance to retort.

"Baka." Risa muttered as she watched Satoshi going off.

"Hey, girl. Alone?" A voice called from behind as the person placed his hand on Risa's shoulder. With shock, Risa turned back to see who was it. She saw a group of five boys and by the look of their appearance, she knew that they were either gangsters or some other people playing truant.

"What do you want?" Risa said sternly although her voice shook a bit. She had secretly learnt from Riku that some people would be 'scared' of you if you play tough.

"Why the attitude, pretty?" The same person held Risa's chin. Risa shook with fear as she tried to make a tough stand but failed.

"Let her go." A cold voice said.

"Satoshi!" Risa exclaimed with relief, knowing help has arrived.

"Do you know who we are?" The guy said, letting go of Risa and advancing on Satoshi, with his friends behind him.

"Why do I care?" Satoshi said curtly.

"Then you're asking for it!" The guy said and clenched his fist, getting ready to fight Satoshi. He took out his fist and got ready to punch Satoshi in the face. But like the trained police officer he was, Satoshi caught the fist with only one hand. The person retreated and said roughly, "So you're playing rough, huh?"

"If you want to." Satoshi said and went to Risa's side, handing her the two cups of ice-cream.

"Satoshi..." Risa said uncertainly. Satoshi didn't respond but advanced to the gang and with his skills, he easily dodged the attacks, making any two person aiming for him at the same time hurt each other. Slowly, a crowd began to form but none of them were doing anything but persuading them to stop fighting. Suddenly, two police alarms sounded and when the gang glanced at the source of the sound, they took off to their heels.

When the police car stopped, an officer came out of the car and barked, "Somebody phoned that there was a fight. Who are they?" Almost immediately, the crowd stood at one side, showing Satoshi and Risa to the officer. (A/N: Does this make sense? My english isn't that good.)

"So you were the one involved in the fight, huh?" The officer said.

"Yeah." Satoshi said curtly.

"Who did you fought with?" The officer questioned.

"Some teenage guys. But they took off." Satoshi answered.

"Well, then I'm afraid you have to follow me to the police station for questioning." The officer said.

"Are you saying you don't trust me?" Satoshi replied coldly.

"Who's the higher authority?" The officer answered, raising his voice. Satoshi took out his wallet and retrieved his police pass. He shoved it in the officer's face and said, "Does this answer your question?"

The officer took the pass and examined it closely. "Inspector Hiwatari. Hiwatari?!" The officer muttered slowly and later said loudly in shock. "You're Chief Inspector Hiwatari's son, Hiwatari Satoshi?!"

"Yeah. So you still want me to come to the police station? I'll be more than happy to." Satoshi said with a smirk.

"No, no, no. Of course not! I'm so sorry, inspector! Got to be going. Haha. See you." The officer stammered and made his way to the car quickly, leaving the place.

As soon as they see that there was nothing interesting anymore, the crowd dispersed immediately. When Satoshi returned to Risa's side, Risa gave him a smile and said, "Thank you."

"For what?" Satoshi asked.

"For helping me get rid of those pranksters and helped us avoid going to the police station." Risa smiled. Satoshi blinked a few times before turning away, muttering, "You're welcome." After a moment of silence, Satoshi said, "You know? The ice-cream is melting."

"Oops." Risa said, handing Satoshi's ice-cream to him. "Sorry."

As they ate their ice-cream, they strolled to Risa's house. The two of them secretly glanced at each other. Unfortunately, their timing was wrong, so they didn't notice.

--------------------------------------------------------------X----------------------------------------------------------

"Miyu, can you help me just this once. Please?" Daisuke placed his hands together and pleaded.

"Why?" Miyu asked.

"My mother asked me to go home earlier. I don't know why though." Daisuke confessed. (A/N: Saehara is the irresponsible type - no offense - so you can probably figure why Daisuke didn't ask him.)

"Okay. Besides, I'm free today." Miyu answered.

"Thank you so much, Miyu! I owe you one!" Daisuke said as he rushed off.

"Hey, Miyu, do you know where's Daisuke? He's supposed to be doing class duty with me today." Miyu turned around and saw Riku.

"He said that he was busy today, so I'm standing in for him." Miyu answered.

"I see." Riku replied, slightly disappointed. "Well, I guess it's just the two of us. Let's begin!" Miyu nodded in reply.

The duty went pretty quiet between the two friends, when...

"Ah!"

"What happened, Riku?" Miyu asked, rushing to Riku's side.

"I was dusting the flower vase when it dropped on the floor. I kind of hurt my finger when I tried to pick up the pieces." Riku explained.

"You know, breaking a vase is very easy. But breaking the love for someone isn't that simple, nor is it easy." Miyu said as he helped Riku pick up the pieces.

"You like someone?" Riku said, getting the hint.

"Yeah. But she's already attached." Miyu said disappointedly.

"Don't worry!" Riku cheered him up. "As long as you're sincere, I'm sure that girl will like you eventually."

"You think so?"

"Yeah. So who do you like?" Riku asked with geniune interest.

"You."

"Huh?" Riku blinked.

"I like you."

* * *

A/N: I know that how Miyu confess to Riku isn't very well done, idea-wise. But I couldn't think of anymore ideas. So I apologize for that. I have nothing else to say about this chapter except that so I'll end here for now. 

Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed it! Please review! I'm begging you!

Like I said before, there isn't any spelling check in WordPad so there might be a lot of spelling and grammar errors. Sorry.

Oh, and the reason for the chapter name is because:

1) Satoshi and Risa glanced at each other at the wrong timing.

2) Daisuke went off at the wrong timing, leaving Riku with Miyu for duty.

Get it? Hope you do! See you next chapter!


	8. Misunderstanding

Disclaimer: I do not own DN Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the late update because I was busy. Hope you'll enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Thanks for reviewing! Hope you'll enjoy this chapter!

**seehuey**: YES! I FINALLY UPDATED! Hope you'll enjoy this chapter! And sorry for the late update.

**KazeNoTusbasa**: I also don't like Miyu confessing to Riku but that's how the story goes! Don't worry though, Daisuke and Riku are still the star pairing and they'll get together in the end.

**shana.rose.**: Oh, but I'm sure he blushed. Even though I'm the writer of this story, I'm not sure myself. Haha…affairs of heart. (I speak in strange language so don't mind me.)

**AllyCatXandi**: Wiz is already included inside the story even though it's not mentioned. But hey, that was a pretty good idea so maybe I'll think about it!

**Ying Yow**: Sorry for the late update! I know how it feels to be left with cliffhangers. It's torturous, yes. So I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

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_**Chapter 8: Misunderstanding**_

Riku stood there for what seems like centuries. She had just heard Miyu's confession a few minutes ago and now she's stunned. Guilt and apologies seemed to be writing all over on Riku's face as she grab her bag and ran out of the classroom and all the way home.

It was ridiculous for Miyu to confess to her like, since it was obvious that Daisuke and Riku was a couple. Couldn't he see that? Obviously not, Riku thought. As she ran, her pace began to slow down. How can she refuse him? He seemed so sincere and it was crystal clear that Miyu was a sentimental guy. She had considered going to Risa for advice, but knowing her twin sister, Riku was sure she would tell Daisuke or Satoshi. Either way, it was no go as she was sure Satoshi would inform Daisuke about this.

She walked home deep in thought of ideas rejecting Miyu. Say sorry? It would seem that she is not sincere about this. Say that he would find a better girl in future? Too corny. There's got to be some ways to reject him that is nice and straightforward. Giving in to her lack of ideas, she decided to consult Risa, but she reminded herself of something very important: threaten Risa to shut up about the matter to anyone.

_Meanwhile, with Miyu…_

The day went well for Miyu…until he confessed to Riku. It was a dumb thing to do, he was sure, but no matter what, his want of telling her about his feelings has being fulfilled and in some way or another, he felt a sense of accomplishment.

However, Miyu was sure that Riku didn't like him in the way he liked her. She had just ran out of the classroom. He sighed and wondered who was the person Riku likes. Was it Daisuke? She did make him lunch once and they looked so happy together. Miyu shook his head and snapped out of his thoughts. Sweeping up the shards of the vase, he reminded himself to get a new vase from the general office in place of the broken one.

"Excuse me?" A soft voice said. Miyu heard the small voice and looked around the classroom, scanning for whoever said that. Then, he saw a girl standing at the door of the classroom, looking somewhat worried.

"Yes?" Miyu asked politely. He concluded that she wasn't in this school because she was dressed in other styles of clothes, definitely not school uniform. She had a white top and a white skirt to the length of her knee. On her blondish-yellow hair was a white hair-band adorned on it with frilly white ribbons.

"Is this the class of Form 2s?" She asked timidly again.

"Yeah. How can I help you?"

"I was wondering if Daisuke or Satoshi or the Harada twins is here." The girl explained.

Miyu shook his head and said, "I'm sorry but they've gone home."

"What a pity." The girl whispered to herself.

"What was that?" Miyu swore he saw the girl's lips moved.

"Nothing! I guess I'll just have to come back on other days!" The girl said cheerfully unlike her timid voice at first. She smiled and disappeared into the hallway.

"What a strange girl." Miyu whispered to himself as soon as the girl wasn't in sight. Why on earth would someone even bother to find another person in the school? He dismissed his questions in mind and continued to clean the classroom by himself. Understanding the shock that Riku had received earlier, he didn't blame her on going away on class duty.

_In the Harada mansion…_

"HE WHAT?" Risa shouted, widened eyes looking straight into Riku's brown ones.

"You heard me." Riku said, uncovering her ears as she lowered her arms when she expected Risa to shout.

"So what do want me to do?" Risa asked, raising an eyebrow as she swelled with pride; it wasn't everyday that the open-minded and smart twin sister of hers ask her for help.

"Give me advices on how to reject him." Riku answered, then added with an emphasized tone, "Nice and sincere."

"I don't know." Risa shrugged.

"How could you not?" Riku said, shocked and took Risa's arms, shaking her. "This is an emergency!"

"Why must I know these stuff?" Risa retorted.

"You read romance novels. You ogle over handsome and popular guys three-quarters of your life and you watch romance movies and shows too!" Riku explained anxiously.

"You're right." Risa said in realization. "But I have no real experiences."

"Just give me any reasonable crap you got on those romance novels or movies or shows."Riku said in a stress-like tone, and trust me, she was.

As soon as Riku said that, she regretted. Risa was much more of a helpful person than she imagined. Too helpful, in fact. She gave crazy ideas all the time which sensible people would know they were impossible to carry out.

Finally, after much thinking from both Risa, she finally came up with the ultimate way to reject a boy. When Riku heard her plan, she figured that this was the most reasonable one so far so she decided to go with this one.

Tomorrow is the biggest challenge in the whole of Riku's life: Rejecting a boy.

_Next day, in school…_

"Miyu, see me at the back of the school during break time."

That was all Riku had said to set Miyu thinking about her answer. He pondered over the reason why Riku had asked to meet him. Was the answer going to be positive or would she reject him? He cleared his thoughts and returned to copying notes, knowing that guessing won't bring him anywhere.

_I'll just have to see her later for my answer._

_(A/N: You'll be realizing that I skipped a lot. That's because there are a lot of unimportant parts so I'm skipping.)_

During break time. With Daisuke and group (Excluding Riku and Miyu)…

Like always, Risa, Satoshi, Saehara would gather around Daisuke's table.

"Where's Riku?" Daisuke suddenly asked, noticing the absence of his girlfriend.

"She went out for a breather with Miyu." Risa explained. "The air inside here isn't good, you know."

"I see." Daisuke said disappointedly and looked a bit down for a moment.

"Mio Hio!" Saehara shouted suddenly, prompting all heads to turn to him.

"What's wrong with you, Saehara-kun?" Daisuke said angrily from the heart attack Saehara had given him. "Why did you shout Mio-san's name so suddenly?"

"No." Saehara said, his face full of glee as he faced the person at the door. "It's Mio-chan!"

"Mio-san?" Risa said and all heads turned to where Saehara was facing.

"Mio Hio!" The group exclaimed with delight as they saw the blondish-yellow hair girl.

"Good afternoon, everyone!" Mio smiled and waved to the class. The whole class smiled at the girl and rushed to her in an instant, asking her about her life so far (A/N: In the anime, it was told that Mio moved away, changing schools too). Saehara was also one of them and like the Mio-obsessed him, he took the flowers from the vase and elbowed his way through the crowd to Mio.

"Mio-chan, do you remember the first time I present you with my heart and this bouquet of flowers?" Saehara said and handed Mio the flowers in his hands.

Risa, Daisuke and Satoshi looked at one another. Something is wrong.

_With Miyu and Riku…_

The two looked awkwardly at each other and the atmosphere was tensed. Then, remembering Risa's plan for her, Riku rushed up to Miyu and embraced him.

_Listen, Riku. A hug always helps the other person to thinks that you're sincere. Besides, you are. And it'll allow the person to be less upset with you. _

_I hope Risa's right_, Riku thought.

"Miyu. I'm sorry but I don't like in the way you like me." Riku mustered all her courage and said in one breath straight.

"I figured just as much." Miyu said.

"Really?" Riku said, perking up a bit, silently heaving a sigh of relief and they separated.

"But can I continuing to like you?" Miyu said timidly.

"It'll be unfair to you." Riku reasoned.

"No, it won't. So is the answer yes?" Miyu said, hoping for a 'yes'.

"Well, I can't stop you from doing what you want, right?" Riku said with a shrug, followed by a smile. "But remember Miyu, you will always be my best friend." With that, the two became to hug again, a true friendship embrace.

_With Daisuke and group…_

"Oops! Daisuke, can you help me the paper?" The teacher asked Daisuke to retrieve the piece of floating paper which had been blown out of the window due to the strong wind. Being the good student that he is, he obeyed and went to get the piece of paper which had flew to the back of the school.

As he scurried among the bushes searching for a pathetic piece of paper, he wondered what was so important about the paper. Why couldn't the teacher just reprint it? Why couldn't she retrieve it herself? That, he knew the answer. It was common knowledge that Niwa Daisuke has great reflexes and he was a great athletic.

"Found it!" He said happily as he grabbed the white piece of paper. Being curious, he took a peek in the paper and found himself looking at Saehara's test paper. 48 marks out of 100. _Saehara got to study_ _harder rather than shoot useless photos_, Daisuke thought, smiling to himself.

When he came out of the bush, he found himself in front of people hugging. He widened his eyes with shock as he saw the familiar faces when the two people separated.

"Riku! Miyu!"

"Daisuke!"

* * *

Hajimari: I'm using a different approach for my A/Ns.

Riku: Who cares? Why did you make Daisuke appear at that moment?

Hajimari: Sorry, that's the story.

Riku: I hate you! -runs after Hajimari-

Hajimari: -runs away as Riku continues chasing-

Saehara: And why am I supposed to get only 48 for my test?! –joins in with Riku for chasing Hajimari-

Dark: Why did you let Mio appear in the story? That's not fair! I'm not in it. And I was supposed to the charming one… -girls swoon as he strikes poses-

Mio: I'm important to this story, that's why. –sticks out tongue at Dark-

Daisuke: Everyone, calm down –sweat-drops and sighed- Well, readers, hope you enjoyed this chapter. Look forward to the next chapter: The Truth of Mio Hio.

Dark: Who told you to say that?! That's my line! –chases after Daisuke-

Daisuke: I didn't do it on purpose! –runs away from Dark-

Hajimari: Well, there's one more line left though.

Dark: Right! Let's say it together…

Satoshi: Please review –pushing his glasses up-

Dark: Why you –

Risa: Calm down, Dark-san –everyone holds Dark back from fighting with Satoshi-


	9. The Truth About Mio Hio

Disclaimer: I do not own DN Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the late update. Something called exams got in my way. But now they all flew to Antarctica, so I'm really happy.

**ffgirlmoonie**: Since you're so fond of the ending 'A/N', I shall continue it for future chapters. By the way, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter.

**animepirate**: Sorry for the cliffhangers! I hope you'll be pleased with this chapter!

**Jesse Tilley**: Sorry but I admit my describing technique isn't one of the best, so bear with me. I'll try to describe Satoshi better.

**seehuey**: Mio is not a bad guy in this story. You'll find out how she survived in this chapter and what is her role in this story in future or later on.

**Anon**: Sorry for the cliffhanger! Couldn't resist…

**KazeNoTsubasa**: The misunderstanding will only be cleared like maybe 1 or 2 chapters later. Bear with me until then. Hope you enjoy this story!

Note: This chapter might not make any sense because this is just what I want it to be. It's not related to some things from the anime and please just assume there are such things.

* * *

**_Chapter 9: The Truth about Mio Hio_**

Time stopped as if it was a century between Riku and Daisuke. They both couldn't find the right words to say, and were at a loss. The tension between them increased as with each passing second and Daisuke just stared blankly at Riku and Miyu. Finally, waking to her senses, Riku's mouth opened.

"This…this isn't what you think, Daisuke." Riku said hurriedly, afraid that the misunderstanding is going to be worse. Daisuke looked at Riku and their eyes meet.

"I can just forget what had just happened." He said slowly, a sharp pain stabbed on his chest as his throat gone dry. Then, he turned around and walked back into the school building.

"Niwa-kun." Riku said in a soft voice and looked at Daisuke as he walked further and further away from her.

_With Satoshi, Risa and Saehara…_

As Saehara continues his swooning-over-Mio mode, Risa and Satoshi looked at each other with a common and similar question in their heads.

Why is Mio Hio here?

The two remembered how Mio had disappeared after the whole incident of the Black Wing and the tragic day when Dark disappeared (although there was much celebration with the disappearing of Krad). Mio had left them after helping them to indirectly defeat Krad and she was being missed by the whole group of them. However, the fact that she was standing before them was not helping in the truth that she was gone. When Mio met Risa and Satoshi's eyes, she smiled with a friendly gleam in her eyes and accepts the flowers given by Saehara.

Suddenly, the door of the classroom opened and the red-hair boy enters with a dull face, eyes looking down and with a forlorn expression. Mio turned to the opening door and saw who she wanted to see most.

"Daisuke!" Mio said cheerfully, prompting Daisuke to look at his caller. His expression suddenly changed from a forlorn to a happy and confused look.

"Mi…Mio-san!" Daisuke called her name in shock. He turned to the corner where Risa and Satoshi and saw that they were confused as well. Mio approached Daisuke and said with a smile, "Don't worry, Daisuke. I'll tell everything after class." Then, she walked forward to her desk and as usual, crowded with friends as she was quite popular.

Daisuke joined Risa and Satoshi and asked, "Why is Mio-san here? I told she was gone, just like Dark and Krad."

"I don't know either," Satoshi shrugged. "The only way is that her puppet was fixed and repair."

"But isn't the puppet with your father, Hiwatari-kun?" Risa tilted her head.

"Yeah, it is." Satoshi said thoughtfully. _Father must have done this, bringing Mio back to life_, Satoshi thought. These days, his father had been a real and loving father after his reflection and realization about the Black Wing. This caused his father to be so much loving than before and often bring Satoshi along to fishing, dinner or other places of interest. Believe it or not, Satoshi once saw him baking with an apron. Talk about freaky.

Satoshi suddenly got goose bumps after the picture of his father in an apron appears in his mind and Risa noticed him shivering a bit.

"What's wrong, Hiwatari-kun? You know something about Mio-chan?" Risa asked.

"I think so." Satoshi said thoughtfully, and immediately, Risa and Daisuke looked at him with their utmost attention. "It could be possible that my father repair and fix the puppet. In that case, it could be explained why Mio-san is here."

"But would your father be such a kind soul to repair her?" Risa said suspiciously, raising an eyebrow. Ever since she found out that Satoshi's father played a bad guy role in the whole situation, she had a not-so-good view about him.

"Well, he did change for the better. So I guess he did." Satoshi reasoned with a slight hint of annoyance in voice. He does actually admit that he like his father more and wasn't really pleased when Risa made him sound like he is the scum of the earth.

"By the way," Risa changed the topic and eyed Daisuke, "Why are being so gloomy, Niwa-kun?"

"It's nothing." Daisuke said curtly, turning away from them and returned to his own desk. _How can I be_ _cheerful when I saw Riku and Miyu so intimate together?_ Daisuke thought grimly.

"What's wrong with him?" Risa asked again but to Satoshi instead.

"How would I know?" He shrugged. "I'm not psychic."

Suddenly, Riku and Miyu entered the class and like Risa, Daisuke and Satoshi, she was surprised at seeing Mio. Riku met Risa's eyes and saw the glint, then nodded in understanding. Then, Riku joined Risa and Satoshi while Miyu went to his desk to read a book.

"Is it settled?" Risa asked her sister excitedly.

"What is settled?" Satoshi asked confusingly.

"Nothing that you should know of." Risa said impatiently and Satoshi rolled his eyes. Once again, Risa turned back to Riku and asked, "Well, is it?"

"It is settled, but…" Riku caught a glance at Daisuke.

"But what? Tell me, Riku." Risa prompted.

"I'll just tell you when we get home." Riku answered restlessly and returned to her desk, laying her head on the table.

"There are a lot of strange reactions today." Satoshi said simply and Risa nodded as the two eyed from Mio to Daisuke and to Riku.

_After school…_

"Do you mind if you tell us what happened?" Satoshi began as the usual group – except Saehara because he knows nothing about the Dark and Krad thing – crowded around Mio's table.

"Of course." Mio smiled brightly; glad to see all her friends again. After much explaining was made, Satoshi's guess was indeed correct, Satoshi's father did 'revive' Mio.

"He's became such a nice guy." Mio smiled as she talked about Satoshi's father. Then, she looked from Riku to Daisuke and then back to Riku again. "Why aren't you two standing together, Harada-san, Niwa-kun?" The couple looked at each other and turned away, not answering Mio's question. Seeing this, Risa decided to help.

"Mio, there is a new restaurant which sells a lot of delicious delicacies, want to come?" Risa said and eyed Satoshi, signaling to him for help.

"Oh yeah. It is a great restaurant. You should try it out." Satoshi replied curtly. Risa eyed Satoshi with a sarcastic wow-you-helped-a-lot look. Nonetheless, she took Mio by the arm and said cheerfully, "Let's go then! My treat!"

"Wow! Thank you, Harada-san!" Mio said, not seeing their fakeness in it.

Satoshi faced the couple who were left behind. "Let's go, shall we?" Satoshi asked.

"Sure." Daisuke said in a monotone voice.

"You go ahead. I'm going home." Riku said and ran out of the classroom.

As she ran past Risa and Mio, Risa shouted, "Riku, join us!"

"I'm going home!" Riku replied without even turning or looking back.

"How disappointing. The restaurant does sell great food." Risa muttered.

"Then just buy some takeaway for her later on." Mio suggested.

"Good idea. Should we wait for Daisuke and Satoshi?" Risa asked, facing Mio.

"I'm sure they'll catch up." Mio answered and Risa nodded in reply, the two continued walking ahead. Deep inside her, Mio was actually very disappointed. The look of the couple's ignorance to each other caused her to feel sad. It was the contrast of what she had hoped to see in the couple; happy and comfortable with each other instead of ignorance and embarrassment between them.

_Back with Satoshi and Daisuke…_

"Something happened between you two, right?" Satoshi asked and Daisuke looked surprised with the question. It wasn't like Satoshi to ask about the affairs between someone else's.

"I guess you're right." Daisuke answered.

_If it isn't for Harada-san, I wouldn't have even helped, Niwa-kun.

* * *

_

Daisuke: Wow, Mio-chan, congrats for living. -shakes Mio's hand-

Mio: -smiles- Thank you, Daisuke.

Dark: -look angrily at Hajimari- Stupid sense about reviving Mio.

Hajimari: -stares back angrily- Then tell me how to revive you. You're like, disappeared.

Dark: What?! -stares back- You know, if you want me to return to the story, you can just add me.

Hajimari: I know.

Dark: Then?

Hajimari: I don't want to. You're no use in the story.

Dark: -aims for Hajimari but being held back by Riku and Daisuke-

Riku: Calm down!

Daisuke: By the way, Hiwatari-kun was thinking about Harada-san, right, Hajimari?

Hajimari: Obviously.

Satoshi: -hids away with a blush-

Risa: Who? What are you talking about?

Hajimari: Never mind. -turns back to readers- I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Everyone joins in: Please stay tune to next chapter and please review!

Hajimari: So long!


	10. Connecting Hearts and Cruel Fate

Disclaimer: I do not own DN Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the late update. I hope you'll all enjoy this chapter! I'll make this chapter better to make up for the late update, okay?

**Miss Narutofan**: Well, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter! Thanks for liking my story!

**KazeNoTsubasa**: Hope you'll like this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Glad you like the ending A/N. I also hope you'll like the whole story too! Enjoy!

**Ice-Black Dragon**: Yup, he likes Risa here, so romance would be brewing between them! Hope you'll like this chapter!

**Writer-Goddess22**: Thanks for reviewing! I hope you'll like this chapter. It'll involve affairs of heart of both Daisuke and Riku!

**BlazexFlame**: Sorry for the misunderstanding part! Please don't hate me! Either way, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter!

* * *

_**Chapter 10: Connecting Hearts and Cruel Fate**_

"Wow, this mango mousse cake is really nice! Thanks for introducing such a wonderful restaurant to me, Risa-chan." Mio said happily.

"I'm glad you like it, Mio-chan." Risa smiled and went on to random topics, encouraging a conversation between them. Meanwhile, Satoshi was eating his chocolate mousse cake with a liking for it. He was surprised that for once, Risa was right in choosing a restaurant with classic interior designs and nice food. Satoshi didn't even notice that he was ordering serving after serving of different desserts.

However, Daisuke looked bored as he nibbled on his angel cake, which is by far the best tasting dessert in the restaurant. The extraordinary sweet taste seemed ordinary to Daisuke as he ate the vanilla chiffon cake with serious vanilla frosting. Suddenly, Daisuke was broke out of his trance by Risa's high-pitched voice.

"Wow, Hiwatari-kun, you sure ate a lot of desserts." Risa said, looking at him with much amazement.

"Who says so?" Satoshi retorted. When Risa pointed to the pile of desserts plates at the side, he was stumped for words, even amazed at his liking and excess eating of such stuff.

"Well, I just like the desserts here." Satoshi snapped. "It's really none of your business."

Suddenly, Risa exploded just like a popped balloon and the bicker between her and Satoshi begin. Daisuke smiled nervously at the couple and tried to calm them down. He was glad for them; although they were squabbling, at least they were together. Daisuke thought about Riku, questions about her popped into his mind. What is she doing now? Is she thinking about him now?

After Satoshi and Risa settled down with unsatisfied faces shooting at one another, Daisuke and Mio heaved a sigh of relief, glad that the storm has calmed. The food that was originally laid on the table was cleared by the four of them and they were waiting for the bill. After Satoshi had paid the bill and announced that it was his treat, the others thanked him and went out of the restaurant, ready to return home.

However, before returning home, Risa bought some food from the restaurant for Riku. She didn't want her to miss a chance on such good food.

"Mio-chan, where do you stay now?" Risa asked.

"At the Hiwatari mansion. Since Hiwatari-san revived me, there is no reason for me not to stay in the Hiwatari residence." Mio explained.

"I see." Risa said softly, eyeing from Mio to Satoshi. Thoughts entering her mind but she simply blocked out those thoughts.

"We'll be going then." Satoshi said. "Bye, Niwa-kun, Harada-san." He gave a little wave and turned to the opposite direction, walking home with Mio, who Risa saw, was trying to engage in a conversation with him.

"Harada-san?" Daisuke said.

"Yes?" Risa turned from Satoshi's direction and looked at Daisuke.

"Would you mind telling Riku that I'm sorry when you get home?" Daisuke requested.

"Sure. But why?" A confused look written on her face.

"Just tell her that. So, I'll get going then. See you tomorrow, Harada-san." Daisuke said and walked home, a feeling of wanting to see Riku surfaced. He clutched his chest and whispered.

_Riku-san…_

"Huh?" Riku looked up from her homework. She opened her door and sticks her head out, seeing if there was anyone calling her. _That's strange_, Riku thought. _I could have sworn that I heard someone calling my name._

"Riku!" A recognizable voice called.

"Risa." Riku looked at her as she advanced towards her room. "Did you call me just now?"

"No, I didn't. I just came back from having dinner with Hiwatari-kun, Niwa-kun and Mio-chan." Risa said, then she handed a plastic bag with two Styrofoam boxes. "I bought these from the restaurant I told Mio-chan about. The food was fabulous, even Hiwatari-kun had second helpings, but he just wouldn't admit it." Risa pouted cutely and Riku smiled.

"Can I come in?" Risa asked softly.

"What? Oh, sure, come on in!" Riku said quickly, almost surprised at forgetting her manners, especially to her sister.

"So how did operation rejecting-Miyu go?" Risa said, jumping onto Riku's soft bed and hugging the bolster.

"It went well." Riku lied but was saw through by Risa.

"No, it wasn't. Something's wrong, isn't there?" Risa prompted. After much persuasion from Risa, Riku relented and told Risa the whole thing about rejecting Miyu, except the part where Daisuke came into the picture.

"HE STILL LIKES YOU EVEN THOUGH YOU REJECTED HIM?" Risa shouted in exasperation. "What a stubborn guy!"

"Well, I think he is a really nice guy, very faithful if you ask me." Riku reasoned.

"Don't tell me you like him?" Risa said in shock.

"Of course not!" Riku said angrily, throwing a pillow at Risa playfully. "I already have Niwa-kun, remember?" Just as she said that, a sour feeling surfaced.

"Oh, that reminds me." Risa said suddenly. "Just before Niwa-kun went home, he told me to apologize to you on his behalf. What happened?"

"Nothing." Riku said, turning away from Risa.

"Come on, Riku. I'm your sister, you can tell me anything." Risa prompted but Riku's decision stood firm.

"No means no. Now get out of my room." Riku said and pushed her sister out of her room.

"Come on, Riku. Don't be so mean." Risa pleaded. After Risa was officially out of her room, she slammed the door in her face, hitting Risa on her nose.

"Ouch, that hurts, Riku!" Risa complained.

"Serves you right!" Riku said angrily and began to ignore her, resuming her homework and trying not to think about Daisuke.

"Stupid Riku." Risa scolded her sister under her breath. "Even if she doesn't want to tell me, she doesn't need to slam the door, and even worse, on my nose." Then, she fell quiet, deep in thinking. "But I wonder," she whispered to herself. "What exactly happened?" After much thinking and unconcluded conclusions, she gave up and decided that it was none of her business.

However, her curiosity surfaced as Daisuke and Riku ignored each other for the following days, even to the last day of school of the week. It was noted that she was not alone, Mio was also very curious and upset at the ignorance of the couple. Satoshi couldn't care less and resumed his daily activities.

"How could you be so unfeeling, Hiwatari-kun?" Risa scolded Satoshi angrily, seeing his ignorance to this matter. "They are ignoring each other and something must be wrong with that!"

"They would clear up things." Satoshi said simply.

"Oh, really? How would you know?" Risa retorted. "What if they continue this for the rest of their lives?"

"You're exaggerating, Risa-chan." Mio said, but her face held hints of worry.

"You never know, Mio-chan, that might happen." Risa said firmly.

"Harada-san, they'll be fine. It's just some lovers' spat." Satoshi reassured them.

"Wow, a lovers' spat can last days. I'm amazed." Risa said sarcastically.

"Harada-san!" Satoshi said with an irritated voice, his expression became serious. "They'll be fine."

"How do you know?" Risa's voice became smaller, noticing that Satoshi was pissed with her.

"I trust them. I know they still like each other." Satoshi said with a softer expression. "Trust them on this one, okay, Harada-san?"

"Okay. But I hope what you said is true and they'll patch things up quickly." Risa said as she saw the warm glint in his eyes.

"Don't worry, they will." Satoshi placed his hands on her shoulders, giving her a small shake. Risa smiled lightly and the most amazing thing she noticed was that he was smiling too. _Was it my imagination?_ At that moment, if not for the presence of Mio, Risa would have launch forward and hug Satoshi, whether he like or not.

_On Saturday…_

Daisuke wasn't sure she would remember the date they agreed on. Maybe she would, but she won't come. Maybe she'll be there, but maybe she just forgotten it all. No matter the case, he was ready to wait for her, even if she wouldn't come. They hadn't set a place or time, but they had promised themselves they would…until the misunderstanding came in.

Daisuke had his lunch and left house, telling Emiko that he was going out until late. Emiko tried to ask him where he was going, but a blush from Daisuke made Emiko realized that it wouldn't be wise to ask. After Daisuke left the house, his destination became very clear; the big fountain area where 'Toki no Byoushin' was first found by him. It had been reconstructed after it was first destroyed at the earthquake on the day where the last battle between Dark and Krad took place.

As he reaches there, he sat on the cement seats; waiting with high hopes that Riku would come. His chances were low, but he tried to be positive. If she doesn't arrive, it might a sign to tell them both that they were done and over. He doesn't want it to end this way. Fate might be cruel, but surely, she'll be touched by the loving relationship between Riku and him? He leaned back, admiring the bright and clear skies.

_Please come, Riku-san._

Riku perked up from her plate of pasta as she looked around the dining hall.

"What's wrong, Riku?" Risa asked as she noticed Riku's weird behavior.

"I thought I heard someone calling me." Riku explained.

"You must have heard things. There isn't anyone calling you, Riku." Then, Risa returned to her plate of pasta, devouring it hungrily.

_I wonder…_

After lunch, she returned to her room. It was strange. Just now at lunch and the previous night, she had sworn that someone called her. Was she imagining things? It was the same voice, the same sad and miserable feeling sinking into the voice. She looked out of the window and saw the big windmill that was structure above a small fountain. She remembered that that was the place where she first knew that Daisuke was indeed Dark. She remembered the embrace Daisuke gave her when she was falling; so tight and so protective. She missed his smile, his silly tactics and his voice. in fact, she missed him. There was no denial.

Suddenly, as if something was attracting her, Riku found herself wanting to go to the windmill fountain. Was it on an impulse? No, something was calling her. _Someone_ was calling _for_ her. Without second thoughts, she raced to the destination; the windmill fountain.

Daisuke sat at his place, not placing a foot out of his destination. He remembered him embracing and catching Riku when she fell from the 'bridge' leading from the grounds to the windmill fountain. He had a determination to protect her, to hold her tight, to get her out of harm's way. Was he being too sensitive towards Riku giving Miyu a friendly embrace? It was indeed just a friendly one, but why was he so uptight and so stubborn about it that led him and Riku not talking for days.

If time could turn back, he would never be so sensitive about it. Sure, he was upset, but not as upset as Riku. She would think that she had done something that betrayed Daisuke, which wasn't true at all.

Suddenly, he heard quick footsteps, footsteps which were running. He quickly stood up, hoping that it was the person he wanted to see.

"Riku-san!" Daisuke said hopefully. However, it wasn't Riku, it was Risa.

"Harada-san, why are you here?" Daisuke asked.

"It's Riku!" Risa said in between pants and tears.

"What happened to Riku?" Daisuke asked worriedly, suspense growing in him.

"She was knocked down by a car." Risa tried not to cry but tears flowed from her eyes unwillingly. "She was running towards here and she was so quick that the driver couldn't brake in time. And, and…" Then she broke down crying. Daisuke was stupefied, speechless as his expression became from a hopeful one to a blank one.

"She said you were waiting for her here before she loses conscious. That's why I ran here to tell you." Risa explained in between floods of tears. Without any signals, Daisuke immediately ran towards the hospital.

_Please be alright, Riku-san. I love you.

* * *

_

Riku: I can't be dead!

Hajimari: Yes, you are.

Riku: How dare you! I still have a bright future! I am too young to die.

Hajimari: But if you do, Daisuke would treasure you more, wouldn't he?

Riku: -blushes-

Daisuke: -looks up from book- Were you talking about me?

Hajimari: Never mind.

Dark: You are such a sadist, making Riku die like that.

Hajimari: The ending will be nice.

Dark: Still doesn't stop you from being a sadist.

Hajimari: You're just jealous because you are not in the story.

Dark: You! –chases after Hajimari-

Hajimari: -runs away-

Risa: I still like the glint from Hiwatari-kun's eyes. –tries not to blush and look at him with smiles-

Satoshi: -blushing very hard-

Daisuke: -sweat-drop and faces audiences- anyway, hope you enjoyed this chapter. Please review!

Everyone: How dare you leave us out, Daisuke!

Daisuke: Sorry! –Runs away from everyone-


	11. Comfort on a Rainy Day

Disclaimer: I do not own DN Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the previous cliffhanger and the late update. Hope you all will enjoy this chapter!

**shana.rose.**: To be honest, I'm not really sure when they'll admit their feelings to each other, I'm just going to the flow of the story. Enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Don't worry, all (if not most) stories have a happy ending so don't worry about Riku dying, because she won't. Enjoy this chapter.

**Writer-Goddess22**: Sorry for the late update! Enjoy this chapter!

**BlazexFlame**: Chill, Riku won't die. Anyway, for the adding on of 'bad news' between Daisuke and Riku (misunderstanding and then car accident), it's just to make a more dramatic 'calm after the storm' thing. Enjoy this chapter!

**Nura23**: Sorry for the late update! I hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm still thinking about whether to include that love triangle you're talking about.

**Luna Forest**: Nope, she won't die. Enjoy this chapter!

**Angleico3156789**: Don't worry, Riku won't die and they'll be together by the end of the story. Enjoy this chapter!

NOTE: I know in the previous chapters, I have forgotten (or neglected) the formalities, so in this and future chapters, I shall be conscious about that.

* * *

_**Chapter 11: Comfort on a Rainy Day**_

_Riku's POV_

I felt the cold air-con brushing softly across my skin and I heard voices in the room. The faint smell of medicine was nauseating, no matter how faint it was. Low voices, and probably saddened ones. Who were they? My eyelids felt heavy and so, I closed my eyes, thinking about my current situation. Where am I?

I tried to listen to the voices and what they were saying.

"She's going to be okay, right?" I recognized that girly voice, except that it did not contain any hint of cheerfulness. It sounded just like the time Dark rejected her; that melancholy tone of voice.

"I'm sure she will be." I heard the voice of the normally-cold boy, Hiwatari-kun. "The doctor said that she just suffered some minor cuts and had a shock when the car knocked her down. She's going to be fine."

I was knocked down? Then, I remembered everything. I remembered how I was rushing to that place when I felt that Daisuke had to be there. I was so anxious and I wanted to see him so much that I dashed across the road, unaware that a car was rushing towards me. Then... … I fully realized what happened.

"I hope so." I heard Risa replied as she stifled her tears and made choking noises. At that time, when I felt Risa's concern towards me, I really wanted to get up and hug her, but I was very tired. So tired that I drifted to another slumber.

_Few hours later… (Risa's POV)_

She was going to be fine, right? Satoshi said so, so I should trust him, right? somehow, I felt useless looking at Riku lying lifelessly on the bed, with drips on her arms and the bandages wrapped around her arms. I rested my head on the bed and look at Riku.

"Please wake up, Riku." I whispered. My vision gradually clouded by tears and I wiped them away quickly. If Riku finds out I was crying, she will be worried. Suddenly, the door opened and I shot up from the bed.

"Hiwatari-kun." I said with a surprising tone. "Why are you here?"

"I…I was kind of worried that you didn't eat anything so I brought you something." Satoshi said monotonously and turned away. Was is just me, or did Satoshi just blush?

"Thanks." I said as I received a warm bento (lunchbox in Japanese) and slowly opened the cover. I closed the bento box again and placed in on the small table next to the bed. "I have no appetite." I said softly but audibly.

"Harada-san wouldn't want to see you like this." I heard Satoshi say. "Eat something."

"I'll have it later." I said in a resigning tone. Suddenly, I saw Satoshi placing his coat on me.

"Hiwatari…kun?" I said uncertainly.

"You need this more than I do. I'm sure." He insisted and placed the coat firmly on me. I forced a smile and turned back to look at Riku. I looked out of the window and saw the night skies turned orangey-amber and realized that the window was tainted with strokes of water. Then, a huge downpour followed and a lonely feeling overcame me again. Realizing that I was going to cry, I quickly run out of the room; I didn't want Satoshi to see me like this. It wasn't the feeling of embarrassment, it was the feeling of being weak and useless when your sister is lying without a hint of life. I sat down on the chair and covered my face with my hands, sobbing silently as my face and hands were stained with salty tears. I heard footsteps walking towards me – somehow, I knew – and immediately, I knew it was Satoshi.

"You know, Risa-san?" Satoshi said and I was taken aback; he called my first name. "It's okay to cry."

That was it. then and there, I let it all out. I knew what I was doing, but I couldn't help it. I buried my head on Satoshi's chest and cried. Why did this happen to Riku? Why must it happen to my sister? I asked these questions over and over again, complaining that Riku shouldn't deserve this. I cried until I was tired and subconsciously fell on Satoshi. Before I enter my dream-world, I heard Satoshi say, "Sometimes, there are no answers to everything. Maybe, the nearest answer you can ever have is fate."

When I hear these words of his, I felt unsatisfied, but somehow, I also felt comfort; at least, I have the ever-nearest answer. Satoshi, I wonder: would you ever mind if I just call you Satoshi?

_Daisuke's POV_

I peeked inside the room and noted that there was no one. So I entered the air-conditioned room and placed a bouquet of flowers on the table. I looked at Riku, lying motionlessly on the bed. With regrets and feeling melancholy, I went towards her and sat on the bed, careful not to hurt her seemingly-fragile body. I touched one of her hands – the ones without any drips – and held it in mine.

"Please wake up, Riku-san." I muttered sadly. "I love you." Then I leaned forward, kissing her lightly on her cheeks. Was it my imagination, or did she smile even a little?

_Riku's POV_

I opened my eyes quickly when I remembered what happened. Just a moment ago, I felt someone kissing me and saying that he loved me. it was Niwa-kun's voice, I am sure of it. but then again, it felt so surreal. Was it all just a dream? I kind of remembered that I smiled in the real process of it. Still, remembering that made me warm all inside, and I smiled happily. Niwa-kun, I want to see you.

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A/N: Hope that wrap things up. I'm sorry for the excess POVs but I want to clearly convey each person's feelings. Sorry for not adding Satoshi's, I forgotten about him. But don't worry, I'll be doing his POV in the next chapter.

Please review and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!


	12. Inside of Hearts

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Okay, I know I've been abandoning this story for a long while now because I was totally concentrating on my other two stories so I decided to update now.

**BlazexFlame**: Thanks for the review. And don't worry, I spazz a lot in reviews too. It's fun! Anyway, I'm totally into writing Risa and Satoshi so I'm glad that they interacted the previous chapter. Enjoy this chapter!

**Anonymous**: Sorry for the late update. I was concentrating on two stories for the time-being. Enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Well, some words don't make sense but hey, I understand it! Enjoy this chapter!

**Luna Forest**: And here I was wondering I should make Riku sleep like, what, a month? Haha. Enjoy this chapter!

**Chantelle**: Sorry for the late update. Too buried in my own little world of my other two stories. Enjoy this chapter!

**DattebayO**: I WILL NEVER ABANDON THIS STORY! It's working out so good that it'll be such a pity if I drop it. Enjoy this chapter! And sorry for the late update.

**Writer-Goddess22**: Sorry for the late update. Long chapters just took over me all this while so enjoy this chapter which I especially made it long for you! (Pretty much)

**1000Sparkings**: Darn! I totally forgot. Well, read below…

**Hiten Katsu**: I'm going to make it longer for this chapter. So I hope you'll enjoy it!

**everyday-snowangel**: Riku won't die! Or else everyone will be hating me right now! And I don't want that, do I? Enjoy this chapter!

**iMMATUREx**: Well, personally and seriously, I have no idea where the rush-ness is. Pardon me anyway. And crap, you "stole" my idea! Haha. Enjoy this chapter! I was going to make Miyu visit Riku anytime soon anyway.

**daisukezgirl13**: Well, he does care for Risa, doesn't he? And I'm so sorry for the late update! Enjoy this chapter!

**Chibi-Chipmunk on Crack**: Enjoy this chapter and I absolutely apologize for the late update.

**Liz**: Sorry for the late update. Life was hectic. Enjoy this chapter!

**boktay**: New reader much? YAY! Enjoy this chapter!

NOTE: This chapter might be very badly written because I continuing after a long hiatus and I need time to collect myself on this story.

* * *

_**Chapter 12: Inside of Hearts**_

Random Person: WAIT! _WAIT! __**WAIT!**_ WHERE WERE WE THE LAST CHAPTER? (Looks at story) AND I'M NO RANDOM PERSON! I'M THE GREAT PHANTOM DARK-SAMA! (Fan-girls in background screaming)

Hajimari: Don't spoil the story. Please.

Random Person: How can you say that? You were the person ruining our scenes the previous chapter! And stop typing 'Random Person', darn it!

Hajimari: I'm the writer anyway so please move out of sight! Let the readers read the freaking story!

Random Person: What the… (Looks behind and faces audiences slyly) Sure, if you gladly request, my lady.

Hajimari: What the… (Looks behind)

Everyone: (Eyes sparkling evilly) You didn't give the "self-scenes' in the last chapter…

Satoshi: And where was my POV?

Hajimari: But I forgot! Don't…don't look at me like that! Dark, come in front.

Random Person: What? Backing away from your word so soon? And stop typing 'random person'.

Hajimari: Dark… (Being covered by…EVERYONE!)

Random Person: The following scenes are PG. Please proceed to the story and stop imagining scenes in your head. Hajimari has gone to the hospital for a month or two so… (throws rose and fan-girls scream) if you have any inquiries, do not hesitate to ask me, the great phantom Dark! (-mutters- and darn, stop writing me as 'random person'.)

* * *

_**Chapter 12: Inside of Hearts**_

_Satoshi's POV_

It felt good, having her laying on me like that while she peacefully sleeps. I placed my coat on her, hoping that she'll be warm. I rested my head against the wall while looking down at Risa's face once in a while. It saddens me to see her like this; listless and worried. But how can anyone blame her? Riku-san was the patient in that room and I knew the sisters, although different, were very close. Her current sadness cannot surpass those when Dark left her, or I might as well say, left everybody.

I looked at her soft pale complexion and her innocent face. I didn't mind, because, well, I didn't mind _her_. I felt my cheeks heated up despite the cold air-conditioning. I shake my head lightly and when my eyes felt on the napping girl again, a small smile leaked out onto my face.

Unconsciously, I huddled her closer, smelling her jasmine-scented hair and felt the heat from her body. I knew what I was feeling: love. It was probably the first time I felt this way, the first time I saw her in such a light that morning when Dark and Krad officially disappeared from our world. That morning when Riku-san and Niwa-kun kissed and both Risa and I had turned around so as to feel we're not "extras". And that morning when I took a good glance at everything about her.

I remembered glancing at her at the corner of my eye; the new sunlight was shining on her face, showing her skin's brilliant glow and enhancing that blissful smile she was giving to her sister and to Niwa-kun. Maybe it was at that time I fell in love with Risa. Or maybe it was the time when Krad was hurting her and I suddenly felt…protective of her.

Suddenly, I felt her stirring. Her head suddenly lifted from my shoulder and she rubbed her chocolate eyes sleepily.

"Good morning." I said, feeling a pang on my chest. Her sleepy and innocent face looked almost…cute.

"Good..." She started but paused. "Morning? Have I been sleeping that long? Don't we have school?" And suddenly, her sleepy face turned into a shocked expression.

"Yes, you have been sleeping that long." I answered, remembering that she only slept at 4 in the morning due to excess worrying for Harada-san. "And no, we have no school because today is Sunday."

"Oh, that's right." Risa muttered. She stood up and peeked into Harada-san's ward through the glass window. Her disappointed face told me that she hasn't woke up yet.

"Don't worry, Harada-san." I said, surprising Risa and even myself. "Harada-san will wake up, soon." I didn't know why but I saw Risa's face fell. Curiosity was burning inside of me, but I decided that it'll be much intelligent not to ask.

"I hope so." Her reply came shortly after, accompanied by possible sounds of sniffs. I examined her face and was shocked when I saw her crying all over again. "Harada-san." I said her name softly. Instantly, she faced me, her tear-stained face shone because of the moisture.

"Hi…Hiwatari-kun…" She sobbed and choked briefly on her tears. Without thinking, I embraced her tightly, hoping to give her as much comfort as possible.

"I'm afraid." I heard her weak voice confessing. "I'm afraid that Riku would leave me! I'm really afraid."

"It's going to be alright." I anxiously comforted her, patting her back lightly.

"I'm afraid that nobody will ever be there for me like Riku!" She continued, her voice seemingly threatened to break.

I didn't know what to say. I was not the best at comforting people. So all I did was to stroke her head and embrace her tight. "Harada-san wouldn't be happy if she sees you this way." I tried.

I felt her body retreating from me and she rubbed away her tears. A forceful smile came across her lips and she said with a small nod, "You're right. Riku wouldn't want to see me this way too. I want to smile the moment she wakes up, so that she won't have to worry."

I nodded solemnly, the only thing I could do right now. Harada-san, please wake up, for Risa's sake…

_Normal POV…_

Footsteps sounded through the empty hallway, prompting Satoshi and Risa to spring around and look at whoever it was coming their way. Flaming red hair greeted their sight first because of the striking colour.

"Niwa-kun." Satoshi muttered his name, suddenly feeling heavy inside at seeing Daisuke's tired and almost lifeless eyes.

"How's Riku-san?" He asked with a hint of guilt.

"She's still…" Risa discontinued and turned towards the window pane, hoping he could see the answer without spelling it out herself. It took all her will to stop herself from another crying frenzy.

"Do you blame me, Harada-san?" Daisuke suddenly asked, prompting Risa to look at him with widened eyes which might have contained certain bitterness.

"Yes." The simple answer came and silence hung for a few minutes. "But Riku wouldn't want me to do that. She is too kind for her own good."

"You want to go back home, Harada-san?" Satoshi asked, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulders. "You haven't had a bath or a good and proper sleep."

"I'll be fine without those. Not when Riku is…" She stopped; grabbing her arms together across her chest and her eyes became watery again.

"Then how about the cafeteria?" Satoshi tried again. "Breakfast would do you some good." Seeing Risa was about to say no to that too, he said more firmly, "You need to eat, Harada-san."

"Ok then." The brown-haired girl said listlessly. The bespectacled boy held onto her arm softly and as they walked around to corner to the lift, his eyes glanced at Daisuke, who didn't notice anything. And without saying anymore, he walked on as he held Risa's arm with reassurance.

Daisuke entered the ward, and felt more guilt splashing inside him wave after wave. It was so painful, even if he was just looking at the girl who probably suffered more than he did in her predicament. The Riku there looked so…un-Riku-ish. The vivacious and sporty Harada Riku he knew was lying on the bed so peacefully, as if she was in an eternal slumber like Aurora from Sleeping Beauty.

He sat down on the chair next to the bed and held the hand which didn't have any drips. Gently, he covered her hand with his, feeling her cool hand (due to the air-conditioning) and the softness of her skin. Suddenly, the door opened and he instantly looks back at the new visitor.

…

…

…

…

Daisuke could feel the warm air rushing into his nostrils and through his skin when he entered the hospital garden where patients were enjoying the fresh air.

"It's nice to be out here, isn't it?" A brown-haired boy stood next to Daisuke, giving him a smile. "Harada-san would enjoy this, wouldn't she?"

"Yes, she was always sporty and an outdoor person." Daisuke nodded with a small and dreamlike smile, remembering her liveliness and her everlasting enthusiasm, except when areas concerning swooning over Dark were involved. "Thanks for visiting Riku-san, Kinomoto-kun."

"It's nothing." The amber-eyed boy said casually. "She's my friend too, even though it was a short period of time." Then, with a more solemn tone, he said, "But I just want to tell you that what happened…what you saw, it was all a misunderstanding. You misunderstood Riku already."

"Okay." Daisuke's tone of voice suddenly became monotone. He didn't want to talk about this. It made him feel stupid because he actually doubted Riku then. It was preposterous.

"We didn't do anything you think we were." Miyu continued his explanation, whether or not he knew Daisuke was listening. "I admit I like her but she didn't accept. So she just comforted me by giving me a _friendly hug_." He emphasized greatly.

"It seems to be useless information now, doesn't it?" Daisuke replied, "But, thanks anyway. Really." Before the red-haired boy walked back into the hospital, he turned back and gave Miyu a reassuring smile.

"I hope you can give Riku happiness."Miyu said under his breath. "I know you can."

…

_Riku's POV_

I opened my eyes slowly, looking at a red-haired person with a blurred vision. Who was it?

"Riku-san. Riku-san." A familiar voice called.

I closed my eyes for a moment and opened them again. And my clear vision gave way to the face of the boy in front of me. The red hair, the kind and innocently oblivious and caring face in front of me made me all perked up all of a sudden.

"Ni…Niwa-kun." I sounded out his name like a soft whisper. I could feel my cheeks heating up and I was sure those blushes were obvious.

I saw his face brightened with a wide smile, and his uncontainable tears run across his cheeks. Lifting my hand, I softly touched his face, wiping his tears away.

"I'm so sorry, Riku-san." He apologized profusely. "I'm so sorry I misunderstood you! I'm so sorry I landed you to this condition! I'm so sorry…"

I silenced him by placing a finger on his lips and said gently, "It's okay, Daisuke-kun."

"Daisuke-kun?" He looked confused at the sudden addressing.

"You don't like it?" I suddenly frown and pouted a little. "You prefer 'Niwa-kun'?"

"No, of course not!" Daisuke said abruptly, waving his hands a little. "I…I'm so glad you called me that."

I smiled a little and Daisuke's expression suddenly became calm and collective. "Riku-san."

"Yes?"

"Aishiteru." And then, I felt a pair of lips pressing onto mine.

* * *

Hajimari: I apologize for the badly written chapter. I needed to "collect myself" on this story again because I haven't written it for a long time! So sorry! Plus, Dark's refusal to help me landed me in this poor state of mine.

Everyone: (Looks guilty…quite)

Daisuke: Speaking of Dark, where is he?

Hajimari: I send him out of the story temporarily. In other words, you can say that he is in "prison".

Mental Image of Dark: NOOO! LET ME OUT HERE! MY FANS LOVE ME!!!

Everyone: (Sweatdrops)

Riku: Anyway, thank you for reading.

Risa: Hope you enjoyed that!

Satoshi: (Monotonously) Reviews appreciated.


	13. Hesitations

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the late update because I was concentrating on other stories. Just a quick note, this story is continuing!

**DNAngelfanatic07**: Thanks for the review. Enjoy this chapter!

**shana.rose.**: Nope, this isn't the last chapter. Besides, I haven't mentioned Satoshi and Risa being together, and let's not forget Miyu. Enjoy this chapter!

**animelver101**: Sorry but I think your review was cut off. No matter, you still reviewed and that's what I like about you! (Laughs) Enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Thanks for the review. I hope you'll like this chapter!

**Litterlink048**: Thanks for the review! Enjoy chapter 13!

**Link Fangirl01**: Well, actually, I only thought about CCS for some things, for example, Kinomoto in Miyu's name. About substitute math teacher's name, I'm assuming you're talking about the name 'Kaho'. Well, I didn't exactly get the name from CCS. Besides, 'Kaho' is a common Japanese name, though I could not remember ever writing the name in the story. Well, I did 12 chapters and I'm expecting you not to expect me to remember every single detail of it. Enjoy this chapter! Yes, I'm a big CCS fan:)

**Captain.Hitsugaya**: YAY! New reader! Welcome to my story and yes, I'm extremely glad you like this story! And yes, there will be Satoshi and Risa pairing in this story so look forward to it! Enjoy this chapter! (Overly dramatic drama is a must xD)

* * *

_**Chapter 13: **__**Hesitations**_

"Riku-san, are you alright?"

"Harada-san, welcome back."

"Riku-chan, I'm so glad to see you again."

As the red-haired walked to her classroom, she smiled at her friends who were expressing their concern. No matter how Harada Riku loves the showers of concern she was receiving, the mental note of reprimanding her sister did not cease…

_"Teacher, Riku will not be coming to school for this three days."_

_"Why is that so, Harada-san?"_

_"Because she got knocked down by a car and is hospitalized."_

_"EHH?!" _(The whole class)

_"But she's alright now! Just that the doctors want to keep her under observant so she has to stay in the hospital for three days."_

Riku sighed regrettably for having such a sister like Risa. As she continued to walk to her class, people she had been on friendly terms with waved happily to her and showered the common concern. Her cheeks involuntarily flushed at so much attention she was receiving that it was embarrassing.

Finally, when Riku reached her classroom, she quickly slid open the door and entered without her usual dread of lessons. She heaved a sigh of relief and placed her bag peacefully on the table and sat down. However, the sight of Risa napping on her table (Risa reached the school faster by train) transformed the finally-peaceful angelic Riku into a flaming Riku.

"RISA!" The loud voice woke the napping Risa up by making her jump a bit.

"Riku, don't scare me like that!" Risa frowned and whined.

"You are the reason that I've been so embarrassed by all these…concerns." Riku blurted out, slamming her palms on her table.

"But isn't that good?" Risa closed an eye quickly from the 'shock' she received when her sister pounded on her table. "That shows how much our friends care for you."

"That's true," Riku's expression softened but the frown refuse to disappear, "But it's quite embarrassing, having people to be over-concerned about you."

"But you don't really care how concerned they are, do you?" Risa broke eye contact with Riku and reached for her bag to fish out the romance novel she had started reading only recently. "All that matters is just a word from Niwa-kun asking if you're okay."

"Risa!" The read-haired girl said her name as if she was announcing any possible conspiracy against the school. Upon seeing her sister's flushing, Risa grinned evilly, knowing that she nailed it. It was a good thing that the classroom was still empty at this early time of the day, for gossips were guaranteed to circulate around.

Suddenly, the door opened and revealed Satoshi and Mio from behind. "Good morning, Risa-chan, Riku-chan!" The yellow-short-haired girl chirped as she stepped into the classroom.

"Good morning, Harada-san." Satoshi, although monotonously as usual, greeted them. The Harada twins knew that he was addressing to the both of them, so they greeted politely in return. The brown-haired girl was disappointed, but her heart skipped a beat upon seeing the stoic blue-haired inspector nonetheless.

"Are you alright now?" Riku's ears perked up at the sound of Mio's voice. She looked up and actually saw her worried expression.

"Yes, I've recovered completely, Mio-san." Riku felt somewhat touched by her concern. "The doctor said I'm alright now."

"That's a relief." Mio smiled brightly, "When I heard what Risa-chan told the teacher about your condition, I was totally worried!"

"I'm fine now." Riku reassured her and glared at her sister, "Risa just likes exaggerating."

Upon hearing how she was being commented badly, Risa folded her arms and muttered a small 'tsk' which went unheard by the two other girls. Satoshi, on the other hand, heard the small displeased response and smirked slightly, although no comments were made.

"I have an idea!" Mio said loudly all too sudden, shocking the three friends. Even if the blue-haired inspector was being shocked, he showed no such emotions or sudden spasm.

"What is it?" Satoshi spoke up finally after his previous sentence which was…the greeting of 'good morning'.

"Why don't we go back to that desserts café to celebrate Riku-chan's recovery after school?" The puppet-girl suggested cheerfully. "Besides, all of you liked the desserts the last time round, right?"

The Harada twins nodded and agreed to the idea immediately and simultaneously. However, Satoshi said, "I can't make it. I have a meeting this afternoon with the police chiefs so I guess you have to go without me."

"I thought it was Hiwatari-san who will be going to the meeting, Satoshi-kun." Mio looked at him questioningly.

_Sa…Satoshi-kun?!_

Risa looked blankly at Mio with shock, and her eyes averted to the stoic blue-haired boy, wanting to see his response. However, Satoshi did not have any reactions out of the common. He just answered briefly, "Father just told me to go for the meeting in his place the last minute." Satoshi sat himself on a random chair. "He was really sick today."

"But you really liked the desserts the previous time, right?" Risa spoke up and seeing his cold blue eyes piercing through her warm brown ones, she held her breath for a second.

"I did." Satoshi sighed silently. "But the meeting is more important and that goes into my priority."

"I see." Risa's face fell slightly at the disappointment.

"How about we'll wait for you until your meeting is over?" Mio suggested again in her cheery voice. "We can wait, can we?" She looked back at the Harada twins for their response. They both nodded and Satoshi found himself being eyed very carefully as if he was being interrogated.

"Okay then. The plan suits me just fine." Satoshi said simply and nodded in acknowledgement. Somehow, Risa didn't like the sound of their tones. It was…too agreeing. Could something happen between the two of them? Besides, it was a huge possibility as they live under the same roof. And being a girl who yearns for attention, she felt largely ignored by Satoshi. Other than the time when he comforted her during Riku's accident, Satoshi suddenly acted like he couldn't care less what happen to Risa that morning. Or was she just being too sensitive that day?

"How about Niwa-kun?" Risa asked, ignoring the little jealousy festering inside her.

"We'll tell him when he gets here." Riku brightened at the mentioning of her boyfriend.

Sure enough, when the red-spiky-haired boy came dashing into the classroom (he was one minute to being late) and was informed of the plans of going to the desserts café, he immediately agreed. As the teacher arrived to class late that morning, the red-haired couple found time – no matter how little they were – to beam at each other and mutter a few sweet nothings, which were fortunately, not very mushy.

Risa looked at them and their beaming faces, suddenly feeling envious. When she delved deeper into the topic of 'relationships' along with her musings, she found it surprisingly hard to believe that Riku would have a boyfriend earlier than her. Besides, Risa was all about boys, make-up and girly stuff while her sister was into lacrosse and other more decent things. Comparing the both of them, it would be an obvious answer as to which twin would engage in a relationship first. However, answers aren't always exact and hence, results differ.

Her mind wandered around Satoshi but she was suddenly snapped out of her thoughts when a person called her name. "Harada Risa!" Now that the brown-haired girl realized that she was daydreaming and snapped out of it, the voice boomed in her ears.

"Hai!" Risa stood up and looked up, making sense of what was happening within the classroom. Seeing that the teacher had already arrived, she greeted abruptly.

"It's nice to know that you acknowledge my presence, Harada." The teacher said and gave her a hard look. "As I'm sure you know all too well yourself, I do not tolerate daydreaming pupils."

"I'm sorry." Risa apologized with her eyes closed guiltily and sat down slowly. She couldn't bear looking anywhere else, even at her sister. She had been too thoroughly embarrassed. If she hadn't been so engrossed in thinking about Satoshi and possible advancement between him and Mio, this wouldn't happen.

As she copied her notes on Math, Risa concentrated hard, although Satoshi came across her mind once in a while. Thankfully, the brown-haired girl was able to 'double-task'.

_After school…_

Mio walked around the school compound endless times but somehow could not locate the library. She sighed exasperatedly and asked for directions from students, although preferably juniors. Lo and behold, it was of futile effort.

It was very unfortunate for her indeed. As a student taking Art, Mio had to go to another class for her lesson, separating her from Daisuke and company. However, they had decided to meet up at the library after school, which did prove to be a good idea until Mio realized the library was more difficult to find than it let on. Besides, it wasn't very long since she entered the school so familiarizing the locations of different facilities was difficult.

After walking rounds and rounds, Mio found herself at the same place again; outside the Art Room. Were the juniors playing a prank that involved her to walk stupidly in rounds? The yellow-haired girl had no choice but to peek inside the classroom to see if any friends were still present and goodhearted enough to venture with her on the journey to the library.

She peered into the classroom through the glass window pane and smiled widely. It seems that there was still one more person in the Art Room painting on his canvas. He looked vaguely familiar to her, but she couldn't remember him for exact. Nonetheless, she opened the door and stepped in hopefully. The boy instinctively looked up from his painting and at her.

Mio widened her eyes slightly as soon as he saw his features, especially his eyes. Those amber orbs were so alluring…

"Hello Mio-san." The boy smiled upon seeing Mio, and she blushed slightly at the gentle and kind smile of his.

Suddenly, realizing that she had been staring at the boy, she quickly regains her composure and asked with a tone of uncertainty, "Umm…I would like to ask where the library is."

"You don't know where it is?"

Mio nodded her head in response. "I'm still not familiar with the locations of various facilities."

The boy nodded in understanding and began saying, "To go to the library, you just have to turn left there and go straight until you see the second staircase. Just go straight up and…"

"Do you mind if you just bring me there?" Mio interrupted embarrassedly, knowing that it was quite a request. After all, she didn't want to get lost again, and this was the exact instructions that had guided her rounds and rounds the school.

"Sure." The amber-eyed boy replied and asked Mio to wait for him. After washing his paintbrushes, packing his palette and other art equipments, he covered his canvas with a white sheet of cloth. He took his bag and walked towards Mio.

"Come, I'll bring you to the library." The boy began to walk, a silent indication for Mio to follow him.

At first, silence was their middleman. However, with Mio's cheerful and open attitude, the two progressed into a simple conversation. "How do you know my name anyway?" Mio asked and looked questioningly at the brown-haired boy, "I mean, I'm not sure who you are."

Surprisingly, the boy broke into a large amused grin. "I'm in the same class as you!"

"Really?!" Mio stared, mouth wide open. "But I've never seen you in class before."

"Probably because I sit at the back of the class." The boy suggested.

"What's your name?"

"I'm Kinomoto Miyu." The boy answered.

"Nice to meet you." Mio returned a smile.

"By the way, why are you going to the library?" Miyu asked. "Are you borrowing any books or something?"

"Actually, I'm just meeting some people there." Mio answered. "I was supposed to meet Niwa-kun and the Harada twins. We're going to this desserts café to celebrate Riku-chan's recovery."

"That's nice to know." Miyu commented with a smile. But in his eyes, Mio could tell that they became duller and his expression was nostalgic one.

"Miyu-kun?" Mio called him and the boy jumped slightly at how his daydream was disrupted. However, he maintained the smile and flashed it at Mio.

"I was just thinking about something, Hio-san."

"Don't call me that." Mio pouted and faked the glare directed at him.

"Eh?"

"Just call me Mio-chan!"

"I see." Miyu smiled and then said simply, "Mio-chan."

"That's more like it!" Mio smiled happily and advanced a few steps further than Miyu. "I don't like people who are too formal." Upon seeing Miyu's understanding smile, she blushed slightly and looked away too quickly. Luckily for her, Miyu did not notice and they continued to walk.

"You're late, Mio-san!" Risa said in a high-pitched tone.

"Sorry, Risa-chan. I couldn't find the library. But I was lucky Miyu-kun helped me get here." Mio gestured to the boy next to her and the three friends – Daisuke and the Harada twins – turned to look at him.

"Kinomoto-kun!" The three of them said his name simultaneously that their voice overpowered his weak 'hi'. Riku looked intently at Daisuke, wondering if he still harbored anymore misunderstanding thoughts about him. However, when the amber-eyed boy turned to leave, Daisuke called out his name. Miyu turned back and looked at him with a questioningly look. The red-haired boy did not give any reproachful look (much to Riku's relief) but smiled and offered, "You want to come with us to the desserts café, Kinomoto-kun?"

Miyu widened his eyes at the offer from the boy he thought hated him because of the misunderstanding. Initially, Miyu rejected, but after so much persuasion from the three girls, he nodded quite reluctantly, although deep inside, he was somewhat glad. He eyed Riku who was chatting animatedly with Daisuke and felt a pang in his chest. He cursed himself silently for holding on to his unrequited crush and inflicting himself with so much unnecessary pain.

"Hello." A monotonous voice said from behind the group and their attention were brought there. They were about to open their mouths to fire tons of questions until the blue-haired boy held up his hand, silencing them before saying, "The meeting is cancelled. I'm free now."

"Hiwatari-kun, you're so troublesome." Risa muttered under her breath.

"You're not too bad in getting into trouble yourself." Satoshi's voice sudden made Risa look up at him. His smirk indicated the incident where she got reprimanded and she made a face at him.

As she walked next to Riku, she thought deeply about that morning; about the possibility of Satoshi and Mio being together. It wasn't impossible, but the chances were not high either. She glanced to her side where Satoshi was walking with Daisuke. Seeing that he had caught her looking, Risa hurriedly turned back to the front.

Harada Risa didn't know what to think. She was hesitating.

* * *

Mio: YAY! A very decent chapter if I might say so myself. I was great!

Risa: But Hajimari…

Hajimari: Hmm?

Risa: I could never doubt Hiwatari-kun.

Satoshi: (Blushes)

Hajimari: Stand here, Risa. See this? (Forms a rectangle with fingers with Satoshi and Mio within as if in photo)

Risa: (Stares blankly)

Hajimari: Risa, are you okay? Risa! (Shakes Risa)

Risa: (Cries and runs away) Hajimari, I hate you!

Hajimari: Wait! (Runs after Risa)

Daisuke: Riku, I guess we'll have to do the honors.

Riku: I guess so. Mio cheering for the start of her love life, Satoshi is blushing too much to even look at the camera and Dark is… Where is Dark?

Mental Image of Dark: LET ME OUTTA HERE! (Holding bars of prison cells)

Daisuke and Riku: (Sweat-drops)

Daisuke: Anyway, we hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Riku: Please review!

Daisuke: By the way, when is Kinomoto-san going to appear in the ending credits?

Riku: I don't know, we should ask Hajimari about it.

Daisuke: I'm sure she'll agree. Besides, Kinomoto-san is a great guy.

Riku: I'm glad you think that way (looks lovingly at Daisuke).

Daisuke: Hah? (Huh?)


	14. Suspicions, Desserts and Names

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: I don't really have much to say here except enjoy this chapter.

**ffgirlmoonie**: Must admit but yes. Probably because it would be boring if he is forever stoic, though I find that would be amusing. Enjoy this chapter!

**Captain.Hitsugaya**: You don't like drama?! Geez, I though that is why fan fictions are so appealing. Enjoy this chapter!

**Anon**: Thanks for the review! And yes, Risa is totally suspecting Satoshi and Mio. Kind of make that sad, doesn't it? Since Risa should have more trust in that boy. Enjoy this chapter!

**Littlelink048**: Here's the new chapter! Enjoy!

**1000 Sparkings**: Yup, I'm going to make even more dramatic! I'm assuming you're a fan of drama so I hope you'll like this chapter!

* * *

_**Chapter 14: Suspicions, Desserts and Names**_

"Satoshi-kun, the desserts really do taste nice, don't they?" The yellow-short-haired girl exclaimed to the stoic blue-haired boy sitting next to her. She spooned another serving of the sundae and placed it in her mouth. Her expression was a blissful one as she closed her eyes and placed her hand on her cheek. "Heavenly." She seemingly breathed out.

"Hn." Satoshi replied monotonously. He raised his hand, signaling to the waiter and asked for another helping of a chocolate brownie.

Risa looked suspiciously at Mio and Satoshi while eating her Tiramisu without any noticeable signs of awe. What had the "Satoshi-kun" mean? Even she didn't get to call him with that name, and she had been the most obvious choice for his sacred maiden. Sort of.

"Harada-san," A voice called from opposite her and she averted her attention. Warm amber eyes met hers as she faced the boy. "You're eating that Tiramisu too fast. You might choke."

"Thanks for the concern, Kinomoto-kun." Risa said in a successful grateful-cover-pissed sort of voice. But when the boy continued to pay attention to his dessert, she couldn't help but roll her eyes slightly. Seriously, has anyone in history ever choked on dessert? Maybe one or two but that's not the point. Risa slowed down on the pace of devouring her dessert let Miyu started to let her know about it.

Riku and Daisuke had been sharing a chocolate pudding. The rest of the single people in the group got so embarrassed and felt themselves intruding that their cheeks became an extremely faint pink and they tried avoid looking at the two couple. As they were ready to order another ONE dessert, the rest of them objected quickly and reasoned with "good intentions", except for Satoshi who blushed but didn't make any comments as usual.

"I'm going to the washroom." Risa said and stood up from her chair, excusing herself. It was a rather far distance to the washroom as it was at the far corner opposite where they were situated. When the brown-haired girl squeezed herself between the seats and the tables with so much concentration that she knocked onto another person. The impact left her stumbling a few steps behind and finally falls on the ground with a soft thud.

"Hey, watch where you're looking!" The person she had knocked onto apparently barked.

"I'm really sorry." Risa quickly stood up and apologized with a sincere bow.

"Hey, she's quite a cute girl." Risa immediately look up and saw three high school boys. She widened her eyes in shock, realizing that they were the previous bunch of bullies who had targeted her during the ice-cream incident.

"Isn't she the one who we encountered the previous time near the ice-cream place?" The third boy piped up. The leader was apparently the one who Risa knocked into. He smirked at her as he reach for her chin and lift her head up. His face closed in onto hers and continued that irritating yet intimidating smirk. Risa squeaked at the contact and her eyes searched for help from the other customers in the café. None of them offered any, thinking that they'll be involved negatively.

A waiter tried to stop them but failed miserably. The bully leader's sidekicks brushed him aside and he fell onto the floor. Their intimidating looks scared him until he ran off to the kitchen. Risa, although afraid of the bullies, rolled her eyes at the waiter and inwardly mocked him of his cowardice. Yet, she felt sorry for him.

"Hey, leave him alone, will you?" Risa found her blurting out before she could help it.

The leader's smirk disappeared and an angry expression infested on his face instead. "You are telling me what to do?" He raised his arm and took a threatening step towards the brown-haired girl. As his raised hand was about to slam down onto the girl's cheek, Risa shut her eyes, bracing herself for the pain that she would soon experience. However, there wasn't any stinging pain she was expecting; there wasn't even any contact on her cheek. She timidly opened one eye and then in surprise, she opened both eyes widely.

She saw the familiar blue-haired boy standing in front of her and his arm gripping on the leader bully's arm that was so readily to smack down. "Hiwatari-kun." Risa whispered in awe and stood there silently.

"You're such a coward." Satoshi began to provoke the bully. "You dare pick on a girl?"

"You're that…!" One of the sidekicks said loudly and pointed his finger accursedly at the blue-haired officer.

"You were the one that messed with us previously, aren't you, punk?" The leader of the bullies finished the sentence for his friend and then attempted to bring down his hand. It was fruitless, for Satoshi was so much stronger than him that he effortlessly stopped him from descending his hand.

"Oh, and you also should know that…" Satoshi used his free hand to retrieve a card from his pocket and shoved it in front of the bully's face. "I'm an officer."

Laughter almost escaped from Risa's mouth as soon as she saw the leader's shocked expression with a generous serving of fear. Immediately, he flung his arm from Satoshi's grip and growled to his sidekicks, "Let's get out of here." With a cool façade, the three bullies walked out of the café. Satoshi stared hard at them and they felt tingles on their back. Their façade eventually fell and they practically ran to escape from the young Hiwatari officer.

The blue-haired boy turned and faced Risa, and for the first time, the brown-haired girl noticed how Satoshi towered over her. She snapped back from her thoughts and looked at Satoshi, lost in his seemingly uninterested yet warm eyes.

"I…I'm sorry." Risa found herself saying and lowered her head. She didn't even know why she apologized.

"For what?" Satoshi's bored tone sent her looking up once again. Her eyes showed clear signs of confusion. "It's not your fault that those imbeciles bully you." Satoshi said as he shrugged, looking straight into Risa's eyes that somehow warmth his soul.

"I…I'm going to the washroom." The blue-haired boy walked pass Risa, a small tint of red coloured his cheeks but it went unnoticed by the brown-haired girl. Even though she didn't know what triggered his sudden embarrassment (she felt it), she giggled.

_If only that was because of me._

Coincidentally, Risa and Satoshi exited the washroom at same timings. She stared at each other surprisingly but walked back to their table together nonetheless. When they returned, the two friends were shocked out of their wits. Risa suppressed a scream with so much difficulty while Satoshi continuously twitch his eyebrows.

The table was absolutely empty and not a single soul was at it. Only dirty plates lay atop of the table, as if commanding to be cleaned up. A waiter passed by the two of them and Risa mercilessly stopped him and said in an ordering voice, "Where are those people here previously?"

"They…they left." The waiter stammered, his eyes showing a little bit of fear. The girl looked like she could kill. "They paid the bill though." He tried, hoping the girl would let him go by his collar. Risa did let him go though and he immediately bowed his head in thanks and scurried away.

"They betrayed us, didn't they?" Satoshi said his first sentence since the realization of the abandonment.

"Riku is going to get it from me when I get back." Risa said softly but heatedly. The flames in her eyes were so intense that Satoshi inwardly fear for his life, though he would never show it.

"So do you want to go home now?" Satoshi asked as they walked out of the café.

"I was thinking of loitering around the shops." Risa admitted and scratched her head in confession. Her face suddenly brightened again and she faced Satoshi. "Ne, want to shop along with me?"

The word hit Satoshi hard like a Tsunami outstanding a single tree – him being the tree. Shopping was a dreaded word in his dictionary. Never had he shop for anything except necessities. "Erm…I think I'll refuse. I…err…have something to do in my office." He lied lamely. However, it was useless. Risa had her hand on his arm even with his refusal and there wasn't any way to squirm himself from her grasp.

"Don't mind about those! Let's go!" Risa announced cheerfully and dragged the poor blue-haired boy off along the shops. Satoshi raised an eyebrow at how he thought Risa had been speaking to no one in particular. Nonetheless, he was forced to comply because when Risa is in her shopping mood, you just wouldn't want to break her.

As if by coincidence, Risa and Satoshi entered the art shop where they went previously when they both "played truant" and were surprised that they remembered this particular shop. The shopkeeper greeted them politely and Risa smiled. She wasn't surprised that Satoshi just walked away as if he didn't care about such an unimportant person.

Risa wandered around, eyeing the stationary boxes of paints and feeling the brushes and the smooth canvas. She didn't know where Satoshi had gone off to, but it wasn't as if it's her duty to watch over him twenty-four-seven. As the brown-haired girl mindlessly took the porcelain miniature from the shelf and into her hands, her mind brought her back to the incident in the café. She was so glad she was saved by Satoshi in a way. Silently, she giggled when she recall his blush and his embarrassment.

_I still wonder why he was embarrassed._

_Was it because of me?_

Realizing that she was thinking about that, she blushed furiously and shook her head quickly. What had she been thinking? It was so…hopeful but yet at the same time, Risa knew that it was impossible, right?

_All girls would throw themselves at him. So why would he even like me anyway? I don't even call him by his first name._

Risa knew how much calling the first name would mean. Obsessed fan-girls dismissed the addressing of his surname and straightaway calls him "Satoshi" or "Satoshi-kun", even the most timid girl who likes him calls him by "Satoshi-san". So what does the suffix matter anyway? And then, she recalled how Mio called him…

_It's plausible that Satoshi might like Mio, or else why doesn't him object to her calling him "Satoshi-kun". Not to mention, he doesn't even flinch._

Her endless train of thoughts was broken when she felt a hand on her shoulder from behind. She almost jumped and let go of the porcelain figure she was holding. However, the shatter of the figure wasn't not to be heard as the person from behind quickly caught it.

"Great reflexes, Hiwatari-kun." Risa breathed out, feeling lucky that Satoshi was there to catch it or it'll cost her a price of one hundred and twenty dollars.

"Of course." Satoshi said and Risa pouted at his ego. "You do know that porcelain is fragile don't you? You're being pretty careless like that, you know." Satoshi continued and Risa suddenly felt her temperature rising.

"Fine, I'm careless! I'm nothing but a typical damsel in distress, you happy?" Risa suddenly blurted out angrily. The whole shop suddenly went quiet. Wait, there wasn't anyone. The storekeeper, seeing that a bicker is about to break out and thinking that they were a couple, went to the back of the store. She knew better than to eavesdrop or even witness this.

Risa suddenly realized of her unreasonable outburst but didn't apologize or look guilty. She got enough of Satoshi's taunting of her for every single thing she did. _I'm imperfect for you, so what? You don't have to rub it in!_ She wanted to continue but thought better of it. Without waiting for Satoshi, she hurried out of the store and was on her way home. She refrained from tears and succeeded. The brown-haired girl didn't know why she was so upset about such a trivial thing, especially from Satoshi. But hearing and remembering what he always tease about her made her think that she wasn't the sacred maiden meant for Satoshi after all. After all, isn't a sacred maiden supposed to be perfect and be confirmed by the one meant for her?

However, after a few seconds, footsteps were heard from behind and Risa stopped and turned. She saw Satoshi calmly walking towards her. He opened his mouth and muttered, "I am sorry."

Risa widened her eyes. The three words might mean nothing to her from other people, but from Satoshi, it was as if apocalypse is drawing near. Risa studied him carefully and saw no signs of guilt on his face. However, the three words were enough to mean something. The brown-haired twin continued to walk and Satoshi, without invitation, followed suit.

Crumpling sounds of plastic could be heard and Risa looked at Satoshi's hands, noticing the plastic bag in his hand only just now. She saw the logo of the art shop at both sides of the bag and knew that he must have bought something from the store back then.

"What did you buy?" Risa asked, breaking the silence.

Satoshi blinked several times. Finally, Risa was talking to him. The blue-haired boy replied coolly, "Just something."

Knowing that Satoshi was never going to tell her about his purchase, Risa look in front normally but her pupils began to descend into the bag. However, Satoshi was smart enough to switch the plastic bag to the other hand and he smirked at Risa.

"Mou!" Risa said irritably and folded her arms. After a short while, she giggled inwardly and silently. "Who knew Satoshi-kun could be so secretive of his shopping once in a while."

Satoshi stood on his ground but Risa continued to walk on. When she noticed that the stoic blue-haired boy wasn't next to her anymore, she looked back to see a surprised Satoshi staring at her.

"What's wrong?" Risa asked when she retraced her steps back to Satoshi.

"What did you call me just now?"

"Sa…" Risa started but stopped, knowing what she was going to say next. She lowered her head and quickly said, "I need to go now. Bye." With that, Risa took off on her heels and walked with a fast pace.

"Harada-san! Wait!" She heard Satoshi calling her from behind and her fast walking pace progressed to a quick run as her figure disappeared from the blue-haired officer's view.

"Risa-san."

* * *

Riku: How can you do this to my sister, Hajimari?!

Hajimari: It's the drama, Riku, the drama.

Dark: That's why this story is so pathetic.

Hajimari: EHH??!! HOW DID YOU GET OUT OF JAIL?!

Dark: I'm the great phantom thief Dark. Do you think you can lock me behind bars?

Hajimari: (Smirks) Let's think about that! (Snaps fingers) (Evil laughs)

Dark: What the…! WHY AM I BACK IN JAIL AGAIN?!

Daisuke: Ne, Hiwatari-kun, Hajimari is quite sadistic, isn't she?

Satoshi: (Nods knowingly)

Riku: Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Risa: Please review! Ne, Riku, you and Daisuke are beginning to have fewer scenes, have you noticed?

Riku: …

Risa: Riku?

Riku: I'M APPEALING TO HAJIMARI! Wait, scratch that. I'M APPEALING TO FF(DOT)NET!


	15. Names

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the late update because I was in camp. It was good though because I liked the activities. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**Anon**: Thanks for the review and enjoy this chapter!

**Berlioz II**: I was thinking of transferring this to the Risa and Satoshi section because that is what I'm concentrating in this story right now. I wonder if it is a good idea though because it might seems weird when people actually read the first few chapters and wonder where the hell the Satoshi and Risa romance is. Either way, thanks for the review and enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Thanks for the review and enjoy this chapter!

**Luna Forest**: Thanks for the review and enjoy!

**shana.rose.**: Well, at least she added to the suspense and almost "revealed" her feelings. Enjoy this chapter!

**Link Fangirl01**: Why does everyone feel so indifferent about drama? Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**DNAngelfanatic07**: Roger that and here's the chapter you've been waiting for! Enjoy!

**1000 Sparkings**: Here's the update so enjoy!

**Captain.Hitsugaya**: Again, why does drama sucks so much? What is the real reason behind it all? Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**Littlelink048**: Here's chapter 15 and I hope you'll enjoy it!

**helltishgurl**: What is OA anyway? I've updated so enjoy this new chapter!

* * *

_**Chapter 15: **__**Names**_

Risa eyed from side to side, frowning as she concentrated on finding the person she had been avoiding: Hiwatari Satoshi. She sighed for a moment as her eyes kept peeling out for the blue-haired boy. The previous day was almost a disaster, the brown-haired Harada twin had considered. Not only had she accidentally blurted out "Satoshi-kun" while calling the blue-haired boy, but she had run away after that. To her, that was something that could hint, and Risa was afraid of what Satoshi would think or ask.

The brown-haired girl was so absorbed in her thoughts that she accidentally knocked onto someone. The impact wasn't great and Risa just stumbled unstably for a few steps before gaining balance again. Quickly, she apologized with small bows.

Realizing the person wasn't replying, Risa looked up with a confused expression. Redness slowly ascended up her forehead upon seeing those familiar blue eyes looking into her warm chocolate ones.

"Harada-san." The blue-haired boy said and Risa felt a pang on her chest at the addressing. But then, she thought ridiculously to herself that he couldn't possibly call her 'Risa-san' and she shrugged the feeling off inwardly.

"Sa…Hi…" Risa didn't know how to address the boy anymore. Calling by his surname would prompt him to ask questions about the day before, but calling by his name would finalize her feelings towards him, which was a no-no. "I need to go now! I'll see you in class!" Risa said in one breath and dashed of, not bothering to look back at Satoshi's response.

With all her breath, the brown-haired girl ran down to the field and leaned against the trunk of an unoccupied tree. She panted hard as she closed her eyes briefly, her body sliding down, settling her on the lush green patch of grass. When she recovered, Risa mused on how she might have a talent in sports, seeing how fast she ran just now.

_That's not the point!_ Risa scolded herself stupidly and stretch out her legs in front of her, resting them on the cool and slightly damp patch of grass due to the dewdrops. Her head leaned back onto the bark of the tree and a slight pink returned to her cheeks as she thought of Satoshi and the recent events with him. Those memories were so nostalgic that she felt privileged to indulge in them, promptly curling her lips into a smile.

Suddenly, leaves rustled on the tree behind her and Risa instinctively turned around with startled eyes. The fence was somehow shaking lightly but the leaves of the tree that covered the upper part of the fence was rustling violently that the girl was confused and uneasy. When a red-haired boy emerged from the leaves and jumped down the fence, Risa felt relieved but questions still remained in her mind.

"Niwa-kun!" Risa said loudly with a relieved sigh as the boy seemingly floated down.

"Ha…Harada-san!" The red-haired boy turned to look at Risa. His brief concentration on Risa resulted in his nasty landing and the girl instantly stood up went forward to help.

"Sorry I made you missed a step just now, Niwa-kun." Risa apologized quickly and held him up.

"Don't worry, Harada-san." Daisuke said. Risa unhanded him and watched him brush off the dirt on his uniform. Then, he faced the concerned girl and said with a bright smile, "See, I'm alright now!"

"That's good." Risa muttered and then asked again, "What are you doing, climbing the fence like that?"

"I though I was late so I used this "shortcut"." Daisuke said, scratching his head with a small redness which indicated his embarrassment. "But now as I see you here, Harada-san, I don't think I am after all."

"No, you're not." Risa said with a small smile. Then, she returned to her sitting position against the tree.

"Why are you sitting here anyway?" Daisuke asked in a concerned tone and helped himself to a seat next to Risa. "Is something troubling you, Harada-san?"

The question made the dazed girl jumped up in slight surprise. Was her expression so readable that the red-haired boy himself could guess? Risa shook her head and scolded her stupid inwardly. Her mind acted fast; should she answer yes or no? If she said yes, Daisuke will, no doubt, continue asking. Saying no would mean there wouldn't be prompting, in other words, no answers at all and it would be more meaningless.

"Niwa-kun," The brown-haired girl began, slightly hesitant. "Do you think Hiwatari-kun…is he capable of showing feelings?"

The question should have stunned Daisuke, Risa thought, but she was wrong. She turned to look at him and saw his rather serene expression. "Well," the red-haired boy started, "Hiwatari-kun might look cold and emotionless on the surface, but deep down, he really is a nice person."

"Niwa-kun…"

"I should know that because we been through a lot with each other in Dark's incident." Daisuke went on with a nostalgic glint clouded his eyes. "He might seem as if he couldn't be bothered about you, but he actually care. He would have a secret hope to help and when he helped, he would disown any form of thanks or he won't tell other people of his efforts and initiative. That's the kind of person Hiwatari-kun is; he helps but disclaims any appreciation."

"Isn't that quite foolish?" Risa asked in a small audible voice.

"Foolish?" Daisuke mused for a while and then laughed, "Maybe. Although Hiwatari-kun isn't good at showing feelings, he still does show them, just that it isn't obvious. Why do you want to ask about this?"

"Nothing!" Risa said quickly, waving her hands that indicated no. "It's just that although all of us may be friends, I still feel I don't know much about him."

"But you must have realized that he is gradually opening up to us, don't you?" Daisuke asked.

"No," Risa asked with a hint of puzzlement and surprise. "I don't."

"Well, he is." Daisuke continued. "That's what Riku-san told me on the phone last night. And then, when I think about it, I must say she is quite right."

"But I don't notice it at all." Risa said, hiding the tone of disappointment in her voice.

"He opens up slow," The red-haired boy explained. "But he still opens up." Risa nodded understandingly at that statement.

"Niwa-kun, if you are so close to Hiwatari-kun, why don't you ever call him by his first name?" Risa asked.

"I never thought about that." The red-haired boy admitted. Then, on a cheerier tone, he said, "Maybe I'll ask him about it later!"

Then a bell rang from the school building, prompting the two friends to stand up and head towards their classroom.

"Oh, and Niwa-kun," Risa began.

"Yes?"

"You and everyone else are going to pay for yesterday." Bright evil glints glared at the suddenly sweating Daisuke through the girl's chocolate brown eyes.

Oh yes, Niwa Daisuke, Harada Riku, Mio Hio and Kinomoto Miyu is going to pay. In full.

"ICE-CREAM FOR A WEEK?!"

"CLEAN YOUR ROOM FOR A WEEK?!"

"DO YOUR CLASSROOM DUTIES NEXT WEEK?!"

"Teach you homework?" The amber-eyed boy said in a rather amused tone. "That's not so bad."

"Oh it is that bad, Kinomoto-kun!" The red-haired twin said. "Risa is not the brightest creature on earth, you see." Riku whispered as softly as possible to avoid being heard by her sister.

"I heard that, Riku!" Risa said rather heatedly.

"Anyway, why must we do these things, Risa-chan?!" Mio cried out loud with an angry pout. "We didn't do anything wrong!"

"Oh yes, you did! You left us in the café and went away without waiting for us!" Risa seemingly tower over the four guilty parties as they lowered their heads in shame. "That's something more than wrong, it is betrayal!"

"But Satoshi-kun didn't give us any punishments!" Mio pointed out.

"That's because it isn't his style." Risa countered, trying hard not to even glance at the stoic boy.

"It's…it's not so serious that punishments are needed, right, Harada-san?" Miyu tried bravely and everyone look up at Risa with innocent angel faces, hoping to be pardoned from their sins. However, Risa raised a threatening eyebrow at them, and the four people lowered their heads quickly and looked at one another again.

"So that's settled then!" Risa said with a tone of finality.

"Hai." The four people replied unenthusiastically.

Risa smiled in triumph as she returned to her seat, going through her notes for a mini quiz for the last time before the teacher came in.

"Ne, Hiwatari-kun." Undoubtedly, Risa noted that it was Daisuke's voice.

"Yes?"

"I was just wondering if I can call you something else besides "Hiwatari-kun"." That immediately prompted Risa to look at their direction. The brown-haired girl looked intently at Satoshi and when she noticed that he had saw her looking at him, Risa quickly turned back to her table, picking up her ears to listen.

"Like what?"

"How about "Satoshi-kun"?"

"Why not?"

"So I'll call you Satoshi-kun from now on, okay?"

Suddenly, Risa felt a sharp cold tingle down her spine. She turned her head halfway and saw that Satoshi was looking at her. The brown-haired girl turned back to her table after the short confirmation and pretended to flip through her note cards.

"Okay." Satoshi answered to his red-haired friend's question.

As Risa absentmindedly flip through her note cards without reading them, a card hit a pen lightly, causing it to roll down the table. As Risa bent from her chair to pick it up, she saw that a hand had reached it. The brown-haired girl looked up to see the familiar blue-haired boy looking at her.

"Here," Satoshi said simply and handed the pen to Risa.

Then, with her fingers curling around the pen into a firm grip as she claimed it, she said, "Thank you…"

"Hiwatari-kun."

* * *

Riku: The only scene for me was the one I was being owned by Risa.

Mio: Can't be helped; Hajimari is a mean person.

Miyu: But at least we appeared.

Daisuke: Kinomoto-kun, you're here at the ending credits!

Miyu: Hajimari gave me the chance so I'm grateful even though I appeared less in this chapter.

Risa: Where's Hiwatari-kun anyway?

Mio: (Whispering to Miyu) Probably in the toilet crying.

Satoshi (in the room reading the chapter again and again with a pissed look): Achoo!

Mio: Anyway, Hajimari, where is Kinomoto-kun's and my romance?

Hajimari: Saa…I wonder (grinning)

Miyu: Anyway, we hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Mio: Please review!

Miyu: Ne, Mio-chan, you want to grab an ice-cream?

Mio: (Excitedly and blushing slightly) You are asking me for a date?

Miyu: (Blushes) Well…err…erm….

Mio: (Grabs Miyu's hand) Let's go!


	16. Shooting Stars

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Not much to say except for you to brace yourself for the long length of this chapter.

**Berlioz II**: Thanks for the review and enjoy this chapter!

**DNAngelfanatic07**: Don't worry, they will because this is a Satoshi and Risa story as well! Enjoy this chapter!

**shana.rose.**: Okay, read this chapter and tell me if you still hate, okay? (Laughs) Enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Actually, the main point isn't the 'kun' but rather, it is the 'Hiwatari-kun' because Risa called him by his surname again. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**Luna Forest**: I will! I will! Don't worry about that at all! Enjoy this chapter!

**Anon**: Roger that and here's the new chapter! Enjoy!

**1000 Sparkings**: I'm so sorry that the previous chapter was short but I'm sure you'll like this chapter because this is the longest chapter I've done for any stories and this is over 2300 words, excluding all these shout-outs and author's notes. So enjoy!

**Darkened Immortal**: Well, for the suggestion part, I will make something similar but more twisted. It's more unpredictable for all you readers that way and is better is igniting the suspense. And yes, Miyu and Mio will be paired up so don't worry about that part. Enjoy this chapter!

**Littlelink048**: Thanks for the review and here's the new chapter so enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 16: Shooting Stars**_

Harada Risa strolled along the shops which were alongside the road, window-shopping for a gift. She looked at then items on display at the windows: teddy bears, books, clothes, small structures and many other things. The brown-haired girl opened her wallet and look at how much money she brought, then, she sighed. Even though there was a fair amount of money inside, Risa had no idea what to buy for _her_ birthday the next day; the day Mio Hio acclaimed her birthday since she has no real birthday.

It was a tough choice but Risa eventually decided on a romance novel. She knew Mio wasn't the type who would hide herself behind books all the time like Satoshi, but since it was a theme of romance, surely her open-minded and bouncy friend would excuse the fact that it was a book. She took it happily from the shelf and made a beeline to the counter, where she paid for it and requested for a wrapping service. Risa didn't mind the cost of the service, which was only a miserable few cents because she knew if she was to try her hand on wrapping, she would fail very badly. So generally, it was worthy of two times.

When the automatic door opened for Risa to exit the bookshop, another person coincidentally walked past by her to exit too. Their shoulders touched by an inch and somehow, Risa felt tingles and promptly turned, only to be surprised.

"Hi…Hiwatari-kun!" Risa said aloud in wonderment and the blue-haired boy turned to look surprisingly at the brown-haired girl.

"Harada-san," Satoshi acknowledged her and asked, "What were you doing here?"

"Isn't that obvious?" Risa said with a slight frown. They walked out of the bookshop to prevent any blockage of the exit while standing by the side. "I'm here to buy a book as Mio-chan's birthday tomorrow." Somehow, she felt uncomfortable in her casual tone but managed it well. "And you?" Risa inwardly scolded herself for the casual question.

"Me too." Satoshi replied indifferently.

"I see. Well, I'll be going home then." Risa said with a hint of disappointment; the conversation wasn't long-lived. Her body turned the other direction but was still facing the blue-haired boy with a serene expression. "See you tomorrow then, Hiwatari-kun."

"You too, Harada-san." Satoshi called back and continued to watch the smiling brown-haired girl's diminishing figure as she walked away in a leisure pace while swinging her plastic bag gently. A gentle breeze blew past and Satoshi looked at sunset, his mind conjuring the image of Risa and his heart beat in a faster rhythm. Clutching the handles of the plastic bag, he walked his direction home.

Somehow, he had felt rather saddened by how Risa had called him: Hiwatari-kun. It was something trivial but he didn't want to allow it. Just a few days ago, he remembered Risa calling him "Satoshi-kun" and it touched him in a way that he felt he was loved and close to the brown-haired girl. However, it all resulted back to the formal addressing she had used on him, which he couldn't understand no matter how he got his university degree. Not to mention the many times he couldn't see her during lunch breaks, Satoshi knew she was avoiding him, which saddened him especially when the reason was unknown. Did she hate him? Why was she avoiding him?

Countless questions, endless train of thoughts and unconfirmed theories were broken when a high-pitched voice rang through his ears.

"Satoshi-kun!"

The blue-haired boy looked up abruptly and saw that it was Mio Hio. He looked around the mansion; from the water fountain to the roses-adorned gardens. Sighing and smiling later, Satoshi was amused that he had already reached home before he knew it. He had been so overcome by thoughts that he haven't realized that he had been walking nearer and nearer home.

"Satoshi-kun?" The yellow-haired girl tried again when Satoshi stood there as if in a trance. This time, the stoic boy stepped into the house and past by the girl.

"Dinner will be ready soon, Satoshi-kun!" The girl said cheerfully. "It's my first time cooking but I'm sure it'll be edible!"

"Okay, Hio-san." Satoshi said and looked back at her with a soft expression.

"Mou, Satoshi-kun! I told you to call me Mio-chan!" She pouted cutely and folded her arms in a playful manner. "It makes me feel like a stranger to you."

"I find calling you Hio-san more comfortable."

"Well then," Mio said softly, "I guess that can't be helped, right?"

The two people stood in silence until Mio declared that she had to check on her casserole. Satoshi nodded emotionlessly and went up to his room on the second floor. Once he enters his room, he locked it and flopped himself on the bed, closing his tired eyes. After a few seconds, he opened his eyes again.

_Satoshi-kun!_

He looked back at how Mio had called him when he reached home. It almost felt as if Risa was the one calling him and there was a sense of security in the way his name was called.

_It makes me feel like a stranger to you._

"Calling one's surname makes one feels like a stranger." Satoshi muttered those words under his breath. He spread out his arms and said softly again, "Am I a stranger to you, Risa-san?"

And then, he realized and confirmed one thing, something that he never imagined he was capable of:

Falling in love, and with Harada Risa.

…

…

_But you must have realized that he is gradually opening to us, don't you?_

"But I don't notice at all." Risa said under her breath, following her thoughts. She laid her head on her desk, on top of her worksheets for the homework. Her pens rolled but didn't fall while her hair swayed slightly as the wind blew into the room through the opened window. She wanted to think through a lot about issues regarding Satoshi. It was a tiring task; her heart would always ache when his image wiggle into her mind and she would become very uncertain.

With a decision to abandon her homework because it was a Friday, she jumped onto her soft bed with a soft thump. On top of her bed was a window, giving her a wonderful view of the small town and the big ocean as well and she was grateful that her mansion was on a stable cliff. Risa opened the window wider and breathed in the fresh air as the wind blew on her face, blocking her view with occasional fringe covering her face. She lifted her fringe with her slender fingers and secured them behind her ear, smiling as she looked up at the stars. The moon was a crescent, but it didn't damp the spirits despite not being a full moon.

"After all, I guess I don't really know much about Hiwatari-kun." Risa said to herself, her expression becoming more forlorn. Saying that name makes her heart ache more; if only she could have the courage to say "Satoshi-kun" again but she don't, not to mention while being alone, she still couldn't whisper that name if she want to. "Riku is not even that close to Hiwatari-kun and yet she notices that Hiwatari-kun is opening up to us little by little. I'm not even that observant even though I like him. Maybe I'm just not his sacred maiden."

She looked up at the stars, tears brimmed her eyes as they blurred her view. The stars shone brightly and Risa wished that she could be one; shining brightly and freely. Suddenly, she saw a fast light strike past the dark skies and Risa immediately straighten up. More followed instantly and a smile gradually dominated the brown-haired girl's face when she realized that it was a meteor shower.

Risa clasped her hands together, her fingers intertwining and her palms together as if praying. However, she wasn't; she was wishing upon those shooting stars according to famous legends, tales and myths.

_I hope for once, just for once, that Hi…Satoshi-kun would notice me._

_Just for once!_

…

…

The morning sunlight managed to dazzle the town of Azumano as usual. As the bright rays of light filtered through the translucent curtains, it hit the person's eyes and was rudely awakened from his slumber by it. Blocking the rays with his pillow proved to be futile as the need of air would force him to come in terms with the sunlight eventually. He got up and sat on the bed, gathering his senses with closed eyes. After a few seconds, he lifted his hand to rub his eyes groggily. However, a sudden high-pitched scream originating from the kitchen below rang into his ear abruptly even before he managed to rub his eyes. The boy fell from his bed ungracefully and rushed down to the kitchen to see what has happened.

As he neared the kitchen, a smell undoubtedly from a charred piece of food wafted unpleasantly into his nose. The boy's stomach sank and an unwanted thought drifted into his mind as he secretly prayed that it was untrue. However, when the sight of a sniffing yellow-haired girl holding a circle tin with obviously charred food item met him, he almost froze.

"Satoshi-kun," The girl wailed a little before evident tears slid of her face. "I can't bake a proper cake. It's burnt." She held up the tin of blackish substance to show the blue-haired boy.

"You don't need to bake a cake, you know." The blue-haired boy took the tin of charred cake from the girl and using a knife, he carefully cut the edges and went over to the rubbish bin. Flipping the tin over, the charred cake fell into the rubbish with a soft thump. Holding the empty tin, Satoshi turned to face Mio again and said, "Next time, don't attempt such a thing, Hio-san."

"But it's just that today is my birthday," Mio said disappointedly and lowered her head in slight shame and embarrassment, "And I want to bake a nice cake for my friends."

Suddenly, Mio felt a hand on her head and she looked up with a surprised expression. The stoic and usually cold Hiwatari Satoshi was patting her on the head.

"Satoshi-kun," Mio called his name softly. Upon noticing the blue-haired boy's indifferent character but a sudden pink on his cheeks, the cheerful girl began to smile.

"Satoshi-kun, Mio-san!" A voice called, evidently from the kitchen's door. The two friends widened their eyes in shock and surprise when they saw four heads popping out from the door: Daisuke, Miyu, Riku and Risa. Their expressions were of similar surprised ones, except for Risa's, whose expression was also mingled with an extent of sadness. Satoshi noticed that and immediately lowered his hand from Mio's mass of golden hair.

"Ah, Satoshi, Mio, these are your friends, right?" A man appeared next to them and he smiled brightly at the six middle-high students.

"Yeah!" Mio said cheerfully and hopped over energetically to the man, "Good morning, otou-san!"

"O…otou-san?!" The four friends next to the man exclaimed.

"Well, you see," The high-ranked Hiwatari officer explained, "Since I brought Mio back to life, she insisted that I become her "adoptive" father." The four friends looked thoughtful.

"Good morning, otou-san." Satoshi greeted in his usual monotonous voice.

"Ah…good morning, Satoshi, Mio." Hiwatari Kei said in a deep voice with gladness at his two "children". "I thought I smelt something burning so I came down to take a look."

"Hio-san burnt the cake." Satoshi explained immediately.

"But I just wanted to make a homemade cake for my birthday for everyone!" Mio countered.

Later, it was decided – after Mio's countless pleadings – that Mio would bake a cake under the watchful and experienced eyes of police chief Hiwatari. The girl grinned widely in response and with a determined look, she promised to make a cake everyone will enjoy.

"Why are you all so early anyway?" Satoshi asked his four friends.

"Well, we just wanted to come over early to see how's everything is going." Riku explained coherently, "After all, the almost the whole class is coming, right?"

"Whole…whole class?!" Satoshi stared dumbfounded at them, wondering what in heavens' name they were talking about.

"You didn't know?" Miyu piped in. "Mio-chan invited everyone from our class."

"I didn't know." Satoshi managed. This was very bad, he decided, especially in his position. The blue-haired boy was sure that he'll be confronted by hoards of fan-girls from his class and that he wouldn't be able to manage all of them. He thought quickly and inwardly cursed Mio for her open-mindedness and her cheerfulness that led her to decide things – like inviting the whole class for her birthday party – that were more than impulsive.

"Fan-girls problems, Satoshi-kun?" Daisuke said carefully after inspecting the expression on his friend's face whose colour seemed to be drawing paler and paler.

Satoshi jumped a little at Daisuke's accuracy on his problem but he decided not to show it and neither was he going to make that fact known. With a careless shrug, he turned away and poured himself a cup of water.

"Can we explore your house, Hiwatari-kun?" Miyu asked as he eyed every corner of the house with extreme interest. "It seems to me that there are many very famous art pieces in your house. You see, I'm an art student like Mio-chan." He added the last part when he noticed the boy's questioning frown.

"Sure, go ahead." Satoshi said and drank the cup of water.

Immediately, the four friends scattered themselves all over the house, searching for interesting discoveries. Miyu, true to his word, was inspecting various art pieces in the house, from statues or picturesque paintings hung majestically on the walls. Riku was interested in the huge collection of books he kept in the living room and was sure that more was hidden behind closed doors of the many rooms the house has. Meanwhile, Daisuke was randomly walking around the house as if he was in a museum, touching lightly on the art pieces, taking glances at the books and stopped by to be amazed by Satoshi's father's big collection of crystal pieces that was displayed openly in the living room behind firmly locked tampered-glass cabinets to discourage any thieves' efforts.

However, he noted that the brown-haired Harada twin was nowhere to be found on the first floor; he had searched every room on the first floor and it was obvious she wasn't in the kitchen or in the living room, where his three other friends were taking so much interest in. Satoshi went up to the second floor and searched through all the rooms.

When he entered his room – the room he searched the last – the blue-haired boy had found her. Upon hearing the sudden creak of the door opening, Risa jumped a little and instinctively looked at the new visitor. She heaved a silent sigh of relief when she saw Satoshi.

"What are you doing here?" Satoshi asked immediately.

"Looking around," Risa pointed out matter-of-factly. "You did say we can explore the house."

"I didn't think my room was that interesting for you to…" His words were cut off when Risa went out to the balcony with a bright smile and a small sound of gladness. Clearly, she had not been listening to him.

"I didn't know you had this new balcony!" Risa said and leaned forward against the ceramic railings which were thick like the ones she had, except that these railings had a more intricate design back at her own house. The brown-haired girl noticed that it was slightly damp but thought that it was because of the previous night's rain.

"Don't lean against the railing!" Satoshi shouted in caution. "They had just been added yesterday and…" Before Risa turned to face him questioningly, the damp ceramic gave way as soft cracks formed along the edges. The brown-haired girl noticed and immediately back away from the railings but it was too late. Her balance wasn't firm and at the next moment, she was falling down the cliff where the house had been and it was clear that she would be plummeting down the sea the next few seconds.

Instinctively, Satoshi went forward to grab her but his hand missed hers by a mere millisecond and an inch. Before he could think anymore, he jumped down as well, determined to reach Risa. As they fell, Satoshi managed to grab her hand and swiftly, he brought Risa into his safe embrace when he wrapped his arms protectively around her body. The brown-haired girl blushed even when she knew the about the threats of the sea.

With a loud splash, the two plummeted into the waves of cold water, and the last Risa remembered before closing her eyes and slipping into a small sleep was a pair of arms wrapping tightly around her body and being called "Risa-san" by her savior.

* * *

Risa: AM I GOING TO DIE?!

Hajimari: Saa…I wonder.

Riku: (Whispering to Miyu and Satoshi) See? I told you she's a sadist.

Miyu and Satoshi: (Nods)

Dark: Finally someone understands.

Daisuke: Dark! How did you get out?

Dark: By means of genius, Daisuke. Besides, I was gone so many chapters, it's time I make my appearance. Anyway, my dear readers, we hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Daisuke: Please review!

Dark: That's was supposed to be my line!

Daisuke: Why?

Dark: Because I was gone for so many chapters, the least you can offer me is this small little chance! I don't even get a role in this story!

Mio: (Ignoring Dark's complaints) Ne, Miyu-kun, what are you going to give me for my present?

Miyu: Well, I'm not supposed to say here. You just have to see for yourself in the next chapter.

Mio: Oh? I'm looking forward to it!


	17. New Possibilities

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the late update! I was watching Ouran High School Host Club and now I'm absolutely obsessed! Don't blame me; blame Bisco Hatori, the genius who created the anime.

**Berlioz II**: Risa is always like that, quite too naïve for her own good. Anyway, thanks for the review and enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: That's an assurance for me to know that I still have a sense of humor! Enjoy this chapter!

**shana.rose.**: I love you too and your review! Enjoy this chapter!

**DNAngelfanatic07**: Well, I'm sorry for the little cliffhanger but enjoy this chapter!

**Littlelink048**: Roger that and here's the new chapter! Enjoy!

**Anon**: They'll be okay and a lot more things will develop so enjoy this chapter!

**1000 Sparkings**: Sorry for the cliffhanger; couldn't resist. :) Enjoy this chapter!

NOTE: Just to remind you, this _is_ a T-rated story so please do not imagine _too many _things, okay?

* * *

**_Chapter 17: New Possibilities_**

The morning sunshine has already warmed the earth and gave a new ray of hope to all creatures below with the new day ahead of them. However, not all was well; Satoshi and Risa had gone missing.

The discovery had been made when Riku realized that her sister was nowhere to be found on the first floor, and that was also the time Daisuke found that his blue-haired friend was missing as well. With a huge effort, the couple went over every single part of the house in search – they didn't want Miyu to be pulled away from his art heaven.

When they had entered Satoshi's room, the first thing that caught their attention was the broken balcony railing. Immediately, the same thought went through their minds and they had immediately informed Kei about the possibility that their two friends had fallen off the cliff. The horrified look on the chief inspector was almost priceless but since it was a solemn matter, no joke was made. He immediately called for a search party from the police station. Mio was almost widening her eyes in shock and her eyes betrayed worried glints. Hearing all the ruckus, Miyu had entered the kitchen and was later filled in with the horrible news. His face showed clear and obvious signs of worry.

"Mr Hiwatari, can we join in the search party?" Miyu asked, gaining quick nods from the other three friends.

"No, you'll stay here." Kei's expression was suddenly serious and his voice was firm, a big difference of attitude when imparting baking skills to Mio. "Just in case they manage to come back, you will be in charge of informing us. Understood?" Although the four friends were disappointed with the arrangement, no further arguments were made; they knew it was for the best. After all, Kei was most worried for his adoptive son and the four friends decided that what he does is all for the best and within reasonable ranges. "And don't worry, I'm sure Satoshi and Harada-san will be fine." He added before leaving with the search party.

Mio had disappeared into the kitchen, insisting that she finished baking the cake as soon as possible; she had promised not to let her worry get in the way of the quality of the cake. Daisuke, Riku and Miyu sat in the living room, looking hopefully at the telephone once in a while. The atmosphere was tense and it didn't help with the occasional sighs. Later, Mio entered their view and on her hands was a tray with three tall glasses of juice.

"Here you go." Mio said, placing the glasses in front of them.

"Thank you." The three friends chorused lifelessly while the yellow-haired girl took her seat on another armchair facing them. However, the glasses of juice were left untouched as the condensed water droplets slide down onto the coffee table.

In uncomfortable silence, Daisuke, Miyu and Riku exchanged awkward knowing glances and then they eyed Mio carefully; they knew she was the most worried one here.

"Mio-san," Daisuke said and the yellow-haired girl jumped slightly, turning to look at them with dull eyes, "I'm sure they will find Satoshi-kun and Harada-san soon so don't worry." Mio nodded gently and went back to her own dreamland with a trance-like look.

"Excuse me," Mio said suddenly and stood up slowly after. The others looked at her with worry written on their faces. "I need to return to my room. Don't worry, I'll be fine. I'll come down later." With a forced smile, Mio became to head for her room on the second floor.

"Mio-san," Riku muttered under her breath worriedly and the three of them watched her figure diminished and finally disappeared behind the doors of the room.

In her room, Mio collapsed onto a bed armchair of rich red velvet. Her eyes gleamed with tears that eventually fell onto the soft fabric of her skirt.

It was hard not to worry. Satoshi had been the first person she saw since she woke up, even though it was Kei who had revived her. He treated her coldly, but she knew from beneath his stoic and emotionless façade, he was actually a kind and warm person. That warmness gave her sense of security, and she felt privileged to even be able to live with him.

Hiwatari Satoshi was like a brother to her.

Suddenly, the door opened and revealed Miyu. He was obviously worried and the slight frown on his forehead betrayed the fact. Mio looked at him with widened eyes initially but later dropped the surprised expression. She knew very well that he was going to comfort her, tell her everything was going to be okay. It was the feeling of helplessness that she felt, and she hated the fact that she needed to be cheered up or listened to a thousands of 'it's going to be fine'.

"Go away." Mio's simple response rang in Miyu's ears. "Don't you know it's rude to enter without knocking?"

"Would you let me in even if I knocked?" The amber-eyed boy countered without any ill intentions. He entered the room and closed the door behind him, then eyeing the yellow-haired girl intently before sitting on another armchair next to Mio.

"No, I wouldn't." Mio said. Her tone was cold, but also betrayed hints of worry and tiredness that Miyu dismissed the rare rudeness in the girl. "I know you're here to tell me Satoshi-kun and Risa-chan is going be okay." Mio continued. "If you're going to say those things, then get out. I don't need to listen anymore of this."

"I won't say any of those things anymore and yes, I think you heard those enough so much that it is cliché to almost everyone." Miyu started, drumming his fingers on the side of the armchair. "But I must say this, Mio-chan. You're not the only one who is worrying for them. Niwa-kun, Harada-san and I are worried too and…"

"None of you worries more than I do!" Mio interrupted him with a loud voice. For a moment, Miyu was stunned by the normally cheerful and optimistic but the girl continued with a softer voice, "You don't know anything. Satoshi-kun is…he is like a brother to me and not only that, he was also a friend. Although he is always cold and acts like he doesn't care, he actually does."

"But have you thought about Niwa-kun and Harada-san?" Miyu asked. Mio flinched uncomfortable at the question and retorted, "How much do you know anyway? There had been…events the five of us went through and you didn't. You can't understand me."

"Yes, I can." Miyu spoke calmly. "Niwa-kun actually told me about your real origins and everything about the previously famous phantom thief Dark."

"He told you everything?!"

"Yes, and he said that it was because I was his friend and he trusted me. Niwa-kun is really innocent." Miyu said with a small smile. "But that's not the point here. Mio-chan, don't you see? You are not the only one who worries the most as you think you are. Hiwatari-kun is Niwa-kun's close friend who shares a history longer than you have interacted with Hiwatari-kun. Harada-san's sister is missing so how do you think _she_ feels?"

"Miyu-kun…" Mio whispered softly. Then, with a small smile, she said, "I understand. I was selfish for a while back there. But no matter how much I sulk, Satoshi-kun and Risa-chan won't just appear in front of me like there, right? But still, it's saddening to feel that I can't do anything. I feel so helpless thinking about it."

"No, you won't." An encouraging hand patted Mio's shoulders. "You can still pray for them, can't you? Although it's a bit childish and naïve to think prayers work miracles, but when you think about, you are giving yourself hope. Isn't that enough already?" Then with two hands on her shoulders, Miyu shook her gently, "Be optimistic, Mio-chan, like you have always been."

"Hn!" Mio nodded and gave a small smile. Suddenly, she got off her armchair and enveloped herself in Miyu's chest. The amber-eyed boy was surprised initially, but the expression wore off and a smile touched his lips. He placed his arms around her petite body and heard her whispered softly in his ears, "Arigatou."

But the tears that were inevitable still followed after in the form of sobs. And it slowly subsided as Miyu's scent lingered in her mind.

…

…

…

"_Risa-san."_

Risa opened her eyes abruptly, scanning the surroundings immediately. After quick examination, she gathered the most obvious information: she was in a cave. Suddenly, the memory of falling into the sea found its way into the brown-haired girl senses. "Hiwatari-kun," She whispered softly and quickly looked around the cave for the blue-haired boy; she had remember quite vaguely that it was him who rescued her from those freezing waters and even though she was in her half-conscious state at that time, she was sure that it was Satoshi who had been securing her as he swam to shore. He was the only obvious choice. Realizing he wasn't there, she stood up and bravely ventured the grounds beyond the dim cave.

When she exited the cave, a beach scene greeted her: the ground was filled with sand along with a few healthy-looking coconut trees sheltering their respective ground. At one of the trees, Risa squinted and found that it was Satoshi.

"Hiwatari-kun!" Risa shouted for his attention while running towards him. Satoshi turned to look at her with a slightly surprised expression.

"Why aren't you wearing your shirt?" was the first thing Risa asked when she stood in front of him. Her face was in an obvious shade of pink upon seeing his naked body.

"I'm drying my shirt." Satoshi answered simply, gesturing to the shirt being hung on the tree over the trunk. Speaking of which, Risa became aware of her own wet clothes clinging onto her skin. The girl saw that Satoshi was blushing and she wanted to question him at first, but after remembering that she was wearing a white top, she knew the reason behind his red-tinted cheeks. Crimson slowly crawled onto her cheeks and the two persons stood there in uncomfortable silence, not knowing what to do.

The weather turned out to be much better than expected; the sun was blazing and heated the ground so much so that the sand feels like they were on fire. However, both Satoshi and Risa didn't appreciate it; they were stranded with no direct path to lead them back on top of the cliff, and the weather wasn't helping as beads of perspiration formed on their temples and slide down.

"I didn't know there could be a nice beach beneath this cliff." Risa mused and looked up. "I thought these kind of things only happen in games or shows."

"I didn't know there was such a place." Satoshi admitted. "It seemed so surreal for a place to be here like this. We were lucky this place existed, or else I really don't know where we'll end up."

"Maybe a damp cave at a corner of the sea?" Risa suggested.

"That would be unwanted." Satoshi immediately voiced out his opinions.

"Achoo!" Risa sneezed and Satoshi immediately turned to her. Not speaking, he stood up and took his dried shirt from the tree trunk. He handed to Risa and said, "Wear this."

"Eh?"

"Even though it's hot here, those wet clothes aren't making you feel very comfortable, are they?" Satoshi pointed out. "Although the shirt is quite stiff, at least it is better than your wet one. Besides, I don't appreciate looking through your shirt." He muttered the last statement under his breath and thankfully, Risa couldn't hear it.

Risa nodded knowingly and took the shirt from his hand. Preparing to take off her shirt, Risa glanced sideways and shot an accusing look at Satoshi, which proved to be useless since he had already turned away from her to allow her some privacy. After putting Satoshi's shirt on, she imitated his drying technique earlier on and hung her wet top on the tree trunk. Risa looked down at Satoshi's shirt on her petite figure and saw that it was revealing her shoulders. Her failed attempts at pulling the shirt higher resulted in a lower neckline and she sighed at why boys have a bigger body build.

"Are you sure you're okay without a shirt?" Risa asked, willing herself not to examine Satoshi's body in front of him.

"Sure." Satoshi confirmed and glanced briefly at the clothes being hung, which included an undergarment he wasn't supposed to see in the first place, hence, he turned abruptly back at Risa with red cheeks.

"By the way, Hiwatari-kun," Risa asked as the two of them sat down below the coconut tree and on the cool sand. "How are we going to get back?"

"I don't know myself." Satoshi admitted, looking up at the clear blue skies with occasional clouds passing by. "I guess we have to wait until someone finds us. Hopefully, they realized we have been missing and otou-san has sent a search party for us." He paused and Risa saw him taking out his handphone. She was about to jump for joy, about to blurt out that they were saved and that they could use it to communicate with Riku and the others. However, Satoshi continued, "Too bad my handphone got wet and it isn't working right now. Waterproof handphones should be researched." It dampened Risa's spirits and she sighed distressfully.

"Isn't a way to get out of here?" Risa asked wistfully, creating random patterns on the sand with her fingers.

"Not a chance." Satoshi answered. "We cannot swim since we don't know how far and how long we will take. I don't want either of us to drown. The only chance is that we wait for my father's search party to rescue us, or so I hope he has already." He added the last part quietly.

There was nothing on the island for them to do. Risa haven't decided to strike a conversation, knowing full well that Satoshi would try and destroy each of her attempts unknowingly. It was probably better off not trying. However, it was extremely awkward that way and Risa found it hard to resist explaining her weird behavior towards him during past weeks. But then, why would he care?

"Ne, Harada-san," Satoshi started to say and Risa looked at him, quite startled by him starting a conversation because it's just so unlike him. "Why were you being so cold to me these past few weeks?"

"I…I wasn't!" Risa blurted out quickly and indicated this with careless waves of her hands. She couldn't exactly tell him straight on because…well, she just found it hard to explain. What could she say anyway? 'I was too embarrassed because I said your first name and I didn't know what to say if you asked and that I like you a lot'? Risa wouldn't be able to face Satoshi in the next forty years. Well, maybe she could lose the 'I like you a lot' part but that wasn't the point.

"You were avoiding me and I have noticed." Satoshi's voice was so neutral that Risa couldn't determine his emotion or guess his thoughts. "Why?" He stared intently at the brown-haired girl, who lost herself in the sea of blue of his eyes. Risa felt a soft hand on her cheek and found that Satoshi and she were leaning forward towards each other in an unsuspecting slow pace. She gulped at the dangerously close distance and looked into Satoshi's eyes as if searching for the answer she longed for.

"Why?" Satoshi asked in a near whisper, leaning closer to Risa.

"I…" Risa breathed. Their lips touched and Risa felt a wave of indescribable joy and embarrassment as electric shocks spread themselves throughout her body.

However, a sudden wave of wind blasted at them from above and whatever close contact experience they had before disappeared momentarily. The two of them immediately look up and had mixed feelings upon seeing a helicopter landing. Not surprisingly, the first one to appear at the door of the helicopter was Kei Hiwatari, the chief inspector himself.

"Satoshi! Harada-san!" The man himself shouted above the loud sounds made by the helicopter. He smiled widely and waved ecstatically at the two friends below as if he had just found his parents like a lost boy.

Soon, the helicopter had landed and Kei hopped out of it. He gestured them towards the helicopter and followed closely behind them. When the helicopter took away back to its base, Kei talked over at his walkie-talkie and informed all respective personnel that targets had been found – mainly Satoshi and Risa.

Although the weather was quite warm, Satoshi and Risa accepted the towels politely from the hands of Kei, though they were abandoned on their laps without any consideration to use it.

"I'll call Mio to let her know everything is fine." Kei informed the two teenagers and dialed on his handphone. Risa perked up at the name and she stole a glance at Satoshi, who remained emotionless. The blue-haired boy noticed that she was looking at him and Risa quickly looked out of the helicopter window, her cheeks tinted with faint pink.

_I wonder if Satoshi-kun and Mio-chan are just friends or something more. Satoshi doesn't look like he cares, but, does he...?

* * *

_

Dark: You know, I don't really see an ending to this chapter.

Hajimari: Really? Enlighten me then.

Dark: Well, for starters, there isn't much development between Miyu and Mio or Risa and Satoshi. Maybe it's because Satoshi is too dense or too emotionless in any emotional storyline, but there isn't any excuses for Mio and Miyu.

Satoshi: (On the verge of sending Krad out) 

Hajimari: (Falling into 1st pit of despair)

Dark: Secondly, the Risa and Satoshi part are quite tacky and untrue. I mean, Satoshi isn't the type of person to get _that_ close to Risa all of the sudden.

Hajimari: (Falling into 2nd pit of despair)

Mio: Thirdly, (Dark: Why the hell are you interrupting me?!) how can you make me so cold towards Miyu?! That's so mean!

Hajimari: (Falling into 3rd pit of despair)

Dark: And also…

Riku: You can stop now, Dark.

Dark: Why?

Riku: Because Hajimari is in despair, and if her depression is aggravated, she might discontinue this story.

Dark: Too bad for you, I don't even make appearance in this story.

Daisuke: Then it'll be worse for you because overall, you still have the least scenes, remember?

Dark: …(Pause)…(Shakes Hajimari) COME ON! DON'T DIE ON ME! I NEED TO MAKE A GRAND APPEARANCE!

Risa: (Sweat-drops) Anyway, we hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Miyu: Please review!

Mio: Miyu-kun, I didn't get to see my present in this chapter, right?

Miyu: That's true. Well, I guess you just have to wait until next chapter.

Mio: Promise?

Miyu: Promise. (Hook pinky-finger with Mio)


	18. Question

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the late update because I was watching all my anime and I'm determined to finish them by this holiday. Anyway, this chapter is just a filler but still, I hope you'll enjoy it!

**Berlioz II**: Thanks for cheering up! But I'm afraid this is a just a filler so there's nothing much. But still, I hope you'll like it!

**DNAngelfantic07**: Here's the new chapter and enjoy!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Lol; I couldn't help making Dark appear egoistic. It's seems so like him. Enjoy this chapter!

**Darkened Immortal**: Your review made me laugh! But yeah, I was having some _thoughts_ when I did the previous chapter. Hey, I'm at an age where discoveries are sacred so please do understand. Well, I shouldn't add the note, should I? Because that made you think too much, ne? Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**Littlelink048**: Well, sorry to disappoint you but they won't get together so fast. But they will eventually! I need to think so events to make them love each other more. (Laughs) Enjoy this chapter!

**Anon**: Lol, you're the second reviewer who has more mature thoughts on that chapter! Well, like I said, I'm at an age where discoveries are sacred. Enjoy!

**1000 Sparkings**: Yes, I understand what you're thinking about. (Laughs) Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

* * *

_**Chapter 18: Question**_

"They found Risa and Hiwatari-kun!" Riku cried joyfully as she hung up on the phone. Her voice so loud and clear that it traveled into Mio's room and the two friends immediately burst out of the room upon hearing the excellent news.

"Really?" Mio asked excitedly, her face brightening, a quantum leap from her previous melancholy expression. She hopped down the stairs happily and shook the red-haired girl's shoulders and asked again, "Satoshi-kun and Risa-chan have been found?"

"Ye…yeah." Riku said in between the dizziness which Mio had caused by shaking her so violently.

"That's good to hear." Miyu said and stood next to Daisuke, who was so relieved to hear the news that he finally sat down on the nearest chair.

Just as Mio was opening her mouth to say something, a huge blast of wind blew past them from the outside, accompanied by a deafening whirling sound. Instinctively, the four friends ran to the open windows at the front of the house and saw a black helicopter landing slowly and carefully, blowing dust clouds at the ground beneath.

"Risa!" The brown-haired girl looked and saw her sister running towards her and buried her deep in her embrace.

"Riku."

"Don't scare me again like that, Risa!" Riku cried out and tightened her arms around her sister.

"Satoshi-kun!" Mio ran forward instantly and gave the blue-haired boy a friendly embrace with tiny beads of tears materializing at the corner of her eyes. Risa surreptitiously glanced at them and hug her sister closer and tighter, a bitter feeling swelling in her chest and a saddening hunch developing in her mind.

When the reunion moment was over, Kei had told the six friends to return to the house for some decorating job. "It's a must to set a party ambience," was what he had said as he marched into the house with the six middle-graders following obediently behind him. No sooner had the group step into the house, the adult inspector held up all sorts of decorations, from paper chains to long strings of tinsel, plus a whole lot more packed neatly in unopened packages behind him.

"What is…?" Daisuke started to say but Kei stopped him with a raised palm, indicating silence.

"These are the decorations for Mio's party." The man smiled pleasantly. "I hope you can decorate the house with them. I just hope there's enough for the whole of the hall."

"How can there not be enough?" Satoshi asked curtly, eyeing the large pile. "The problem is how are we going to decorate the whole hall with only six people?"

"I'm sure you'll be able to, somehow." Kei replied uselessly. "Anyway, I need to return to my office to file a report but I'll be back soon to help. After all, I do want my cute daughter to have her best 1st birthday," and the man patted Mio on her head.

After Kei was gone, the six of them assigned themselves to a partner each. Surprisingly and weirdly enough, Mio picked Miyu instantly and Risa was confused as she thought the yellow-haired girl would partner Satoshi. The brown-haired girl gave a hopeful look towards Riku but the Harada twin missed her eyes and was now walking away from the group holding a large box of decorations to a part of the house.

"Harada-san," The familiar voice belonging to Satoshi rang in her ears from behind and Risa gulped silently with an unpleasant pang on her chest.

"I guess we have to partner each other." Risa said quickly and grabbed a box before hurrying off to a random direction.

"Harada-san."

"Yes?" The girl turned back to look at the boy.

"We should go the other way. Hio-san and Kinomoto-kun had gone that way already." Satoshi pointed to the two figures of Mio and Miyu working on sticking the paper chains on the wall.

"Oh." Risa said with a flushed face and followed Satoshi silently as he led her to another corner of the living room. The two of them worked in silence, both still embarrassed from what happened at the small scene on the unknown island. However, even if Satoshi was embarrassed about it, he didn't show it and instead, he worked on the decorations diligently, placing tinsels in perfect angle. Risa didn't have much sense of balance and Satoshi always improved on her crooked paper chains.

"Hiwatari-kun, gomenasai." Risa apologized with a melancholy look.

"What for?"

"I'm always messing up with the decorations. I can't even put up tinsel with minimum mistake in angle." Risa said, lowering her head in shame.

"Don't worry."

"Eh?" Risa turned abruptly to look at Satoshi but found that his back was facing her while his hands set to work on the wall.

"I'll help you along. Don't worry." He repeated.

"Hi…Hiwatari-kun." Risa muttered softly as if speaking his name to herself.

The two of them worked again in silence and Risa was determined to not use Satoshi's help. However, she failed in every piece of decoration herself and the need of Satoshi was inevitable. Hours ticked by in snail's pace when finally, the heat from the afternoon sun reminded Risa that it as already one o'clock. Also realizing this fact, Satoshi brought Risa to the dining hall where Daisuke, Riku, Mio and Miyu were already are.

"We thought alike, didn't we?" Miyu said when he saw the two new figures joining them.

Risa nodded and said, "So what's for lunch?"

"Otou-san called earlier to say he'll be buying lunch for us so all we have to do now is to wait for him." Mio informed them while Satoshi switched on the air-conditioner to cool everyone from the intense afternoon heat.

No sooner had the chief inspector being mentioned, Kei appeared at the door of the dining hall, holding two plastic bags with lunchboxes. "Bentos." Kei said as he placed them on the table. Not holding back, the boxes of bentos disappeared from the plastic bag.

"Itadakimasu!"

After lunch, the group of six settled comfortably on a sofa with satisfied stomachs and sighs. They looked around the house with an approving look when they discovered that the living room (or rather hall since it was humongous) was more than half decorated. With determined resolution, they got up on their feet and went back to their own corners to finish up their work on the white spaces.

After two hours, they got together and led each other to their own "exhibitions", praising each other of their decoration skills. Risa looked quite guilty when Daisuke, Riku, Mio and Miyu concluded hers and Satoshi's decoration was the best.

"_I'll help you along. Don't worry."_

Those words resounded into Risa's mind and her head jerked up to face her friends again. She caught Satoshi's eyes, which gave off a warm feeling despite the blue which people normally indicated coldness. Those eyes emitted a warm feeling and reassurance. Risa was, for a moment, so mesmerized in Satoshi's blue warm eyes that she didn't hear Riku calling her.

"Risa! Risa!"

"Wha…what?" Risa perked up and looked at her sister but saw that Satoshi was turning away to follow Daisuke at the corner of her eye.

"I'm telling you that we are going up to Satoshi's room." Riku explained with a rather defeated sigh.

"For what?"

"Well, since the decorations have been done, we figured that we should do something up in Hiwatari-kun's room."

"Do what?"

"That's what we'll discuss once we go up." Riku's voice betrayed hints of irritation. "Now let's go!"

Without waiting for a response, Riku pulled her sister's arm along, resulting in an unbalanced Risa who took a second or two to regain her balance.

…

…

"Let's play cards."

"What about board games?"

"Uno will be fun!"

Suggestions escaped everyone's mouths and even Satoshi suggested Monopoly. After many moments of compromising and suggesting, the group settled for playing various games with the cards, like Murderer and Heart Attack. Mio wailed very loudly for each time she lost, but was determined to get back at everyone. And she did, but not at Satoshi, whose response was quick and had a keen eye to look out for suspicious characters in Murderer.

"Why don't you ever lose, Satoshi-kun?" Daisuke asked while leaning his back on invisible air with arms as his support.

"Yeah, it's not fair!" Mio protested.

"There must be some tricks, right, Hiwatari-kun?" Miyu asked, hoping that the blue-haired boy would impart some skills to him.

"It's nothing, really." Satoshi waved his hands to indicate no but his expression did falter a little as he received accusing stares. "Well, for Murderer, you can stare at the person for a long while and if they're not winking, there would be a big chance of them just being victim. Or you can look at the person and if he is dead, you can reference it by looking where he was previously, suggesting a possible spot the murderer is."

"Wow." The other five friends mouthed as they stared at the genius boy.

"How about Heart Attack?" Riku asked interestedly.

"Fast reflexes." Satoshi shrugged as he gave the simply answer.

_As expected from someone who graduated from university at the age of 12 and is one of the inspector of the police force._

Everyone thought simultaneously but they didn't voice their thoughts because they knew Satoshi hated to be singled out.

"What time is it now?" Mio suddenly asked.

"5 o'clock." Satoshi immediately answer.

"What's wrong?" Miyu spotted the yellow-haired girl's hesitating expression and asked.

"Everyone is coming at six, and otou-san said I should bathe at 5.15." Mio was deep in thoughts for a few moments and Risa played with the idea that chief inspector Hiwatari was so organized with everyone including time; as expected.

"Oh, what the heck," Mio muttered quietly to herself and announced to everyone, "Let's just play one more game!"

"Are you sure?" Risa asked hesitantly. "Won't you get scolded by your father?"

"Daijoubu!" Mio said happily and went to take an empty plastic bottle. "Now, let's play Truth or Dare!"

The five friends looked interested as excitement showed obviously on their faces. They sat in a circle and everyone agreed that Satoshi would spin the bottle first because he was unbeatable in the previous games. Everyone looked in anticipation as the bottle slowed to a stop, pointing at Risa.

"EHH?!" Risa screamed at the top of her voice and stared with widened eyes at the cursed bottle.

"Truth or Dare?" Satoshi asked calmly.

"Erm…" Risa thought slowly and stared at the bottle as if pleading for an answer. "Truth." The girl decided after a few moments of thinking. She had reasoned with herself that if she chose Dare, there would be no thinking what on earth Satoshi would ask her to do. What if Satoshi asked her to eat kimchi or some other life-threatening tasks? She would die! No, playing Truth was so much safer and even if the questions would result in an extremely embarrassed Risa, she knew she would live. Pride for life seemed like a reasonable trade after all.

"Truth," Satoshi repeated, and then he continued with the question, "Why…"

Before the question was completed, Kei entered the room and said when he stared at Mio, "You haven't bathe yet."

"Not yet, otou-san." Mio said with a defeated sigh.

"Hurry up and go, Mio. Even though the guests are arriving at six, you can always expect them to come earlier." Kei reasoned.

"But we haven't even started on Truth or Dare!" Mio protested but a stern look from her father led her dragging herself back to her room.

"I need you down here to help me with something. Is that okay?" Kei asked to the remaining middle-graders in the room and they nodded with reluctance except for Risa, who nodded vigorously.

Saved by Hiwatari Kei!

* * *

Mio: (wails) Ne, ne, where is my present, Miyu-kun? 

Miyu: Hajimari doesn't seem to just get on with the party.

Hajimari: Don't worry, Mio, you'll see what you want next chapter.

Mio: Really?

Hajimari: Yes.

Mio: Yay!

Dark: As shabby as always.

Hajimari: (Vein pulsing) What do you say?

Dark: The story, I mean. There wasn't any development in this chapter.

Hajimari: That's why I said this was a filler chapter, didn't I?

Dark: Oh…you're right.

Hajimari: HA!

Dark: But the story is still inferior to so many people.

Hajimari: I regret giving Dark a personality of Atobe.

Dark: Who's Atobe?

Hajimari: A person who is so much better than you in almost everything that he had something to back up his egoistic nature…(whispers to self)...like real.

Dark: (couldn't hear the last part) Better than me?! There is no one who is better than the famous Phantom Thief Dark! I'm going to find that guy!

Hajimari: (Shouts to Dark who is hurrying away) He is in the Prince of Tennis section!

Mio: Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter!

Miyu: Please review! Speaking of which, where is Niwa-kun, the two Harada-sans and Hiwatari-kun?

Mio: I'm not sure. I think they said something about costumes for later chapters.

Miyu: Then why are we standing here for? (Grabs Mio's hand) Let's go and get costumes!

Mio: Hn!

Hajimari: YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THE COSTUMES! COME BACK! (Chases Mio and Miyu)


	19. It Just Takes Three Words

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the late update. I supposedly wanted to write this chapter sooner but I was watching D. Gray Man. It was such a great anime not to be missed! Okay, I'm sounding like I'm advertising for the anime so let's get on with the story!

**Darkened Immortal**: Thanks for the review! I like Mio too! I tried to make her character bouncy and cheerful like the one in the anime when she is around Daisuke and group and I hope I succeeded! Enjoy this chapter!

**Berlioz II**: I never really played serious Truth or Dare. And besides, it is very likely of me to choose Truth because I never wanted to embarrass myself. And I wrote Risa's mindset the same as mine! (Laughs) Enjoy this chapter! And about the costumes…what do you think? Saa…I wonder…

**ffgirlmoonie**: Thanks for the review! You'll find out in this chapter so enjoy!

**DNAngelfanatic07**: Here's the new chapter so I hope you'll like it!

**Littlelink048**: Roger that and here's the new chapter. Enjoy!

**1000 Sparkings**: Like I ask, what do you think I'm going to do with the costumes? Very suspending, isn't it? Anyway, you'll find out much later so enjoy this chapter!

**Anon**: Here's the new chapter and enjoy!

* * *

_**Chapter 19: It Just Takes Three Words**_

The main table was placed with different delicacies, generously sponsored by Hiwatari Kei for his adoptive daughter's birthday. Daisuke, Satoshi, the Harada sisters and Miyu helped with taking out the plastic utensils, which was requested of Kei. When everything was done, Risa stood there and scanned the place with a smile to herself; everything looked fit for a party.

"Sorry for letting you wait!" A cheerful voice spoke from behind and the friends turned to look at Mio, who was dressed her best even though it was just a simple pair of jeans and a yellow and orange shirt which suited her bouncy personality.

"Mio-san, you're glowing." Riku complimented.

"Thank you, Riku-chan." Mio replied politely and walked nearer towards her friends. "I used the bottle and chamomile lotion I bought sometime back."

Suddenly, the doorbell rang and Satoshi volunteered to open the door. As expected, Saehara was the first person to arrive, seeing that it was his dear Mio-chan's birthday party. The gift in his hands was big but the wrapping paper seemed to look deformed, resulting in its unevenness. He dashed past Satoshi immediately, making the blue-haired boy slightly startled by the sudden breeze.

When Satoshi returned to the group, he and everyone else sweat dropped at Saehara's expectedly weird and thick-skin tactic: kneeling down and presenting a bouquet of rose to the oblivious Mio, who accepted the roses graciously and placed the present from Saehara at the side for the present-opening ceremony later.

Slowly, the ringing of the doorbell frequented, and Risa found more guests arriving with gifts and well-wishing. For some girls, it seemed that Satoshi was more important than the birthday girl, pestering the blue-haired boy with senseless questions and horrible flicking of hair and battering eyelashes. She saw that Satoshi was annoyed, but didn't tell them off for the gentleman that he was.

Risa saw the whole process and sighed at his popularity. Her confidence suddenly dropped to rock bottom. _Why would Satoshi-kun even like me with so many girls for choice? Girls that are so much better than me…_Risa thought pathetically and heaved a loud sigh, which she thought one would even bother to hear it.

"What's wrong, Harada-san?" Risa promptly turned and saw Miyu with his gentle friendly smile. "You're sighing."

"You're stating the obvious." Risa said playfully. "But nope, I'm fine. It is a party and I'm really enjoying myself."

"That's good." Miyu replied. "By the way, have you seen Harada-san and Niwa-kun?"

"I haven't." Risa shook her head which indicated a no. "But I'm sure they're somewhere in the house. Probably lip-locking somewhere," The brown-haired girl added softly to herself.

"I'm sorry?" Miyu gave a confusing look and Risa took it as he didn't hear the last part.

"Nothing," Risa said. "But I'm sure they're in the house. Why do you ask for them?"

"Because Mio-chan told me she wanted everyone's present to gather at that corner there," Miyu pointed out to her and Risa gasped wide-eyed at the mountain of presents. "I wanted to tell Niwa-kun and Harada-san but I can't find them. And Mio-chan couldn't get away with Saehara-kun pestering her." Risa wondered if she was imagining things when she saw Miyu's disappointed smile. "So I'm the messenger instead."

"I see. Well then, good luck on finding them." Risa said with good intentions. "I need to go up and get the present from my bag. See you."

After Risa saw Miyu going on with his search for the two lovebirds, she climbed up the stairs into Satoshi's room where she had placed her bag, as well as Daisuke's and the others. At the second storey, the brown-haired girl looks at the whole party scene and pinpointed a few people and the things they were doing. She eyed Satoshi for a moment and felt the same heart-throbbing feeling as always. Finally, she broke away with a big effort and went to get the present for Mio from her bag.

When she reached Satoshi's room, Risa could hear the noise from outside even though the door was closed. "It sure is lively out there. Now, let's see, where is my bag?" She switched on the light and took her bag, rummaging inside. After a few seconds, she smiled and took out the wrapped novel.

When she went back down to the party, Risa could hear music drifting through the hall, and she heard Mio telling everyone to grab a partner for the dancing. Immediately, as Risa saw when she placed her present on the pile, every girl was running towards Satoshi, asking to be his partner. Satoshi was frowning and trying to reject all the girls, but their persistence made Satoshi helpless. Suddenly, Risa saw the blue-haired boy looking at her and he tried to move away from the girls.

"Erm…excuse me…Ha…Harada-san?" The voice made Risa turned around and she found herself face to face with a boy in her class whom she wasn't too close with.

"Yes?" Risa asked confusedly at the boy.

"I…Can...Can I dance with you on this one?" The boy asked with embarrassment while some other boys cheered behind him.

"Um…I guess…"

"She is dancing with me." A cold voice said from behind the two people.

"Hiwatari-kun?!" Risa said with a surprised tone. Seeing that the boy wasn't retreating and Risa was still staring at him as if he came from Mars, Satoshi repeated, "Harada-san is dancing with me."

"Oh…I see. Sorry to interrupt then." The boy apologized half-heartedly and retreated backwards to his friends, who were giving him pats on the shoulder.

Risa gave a small apologizing bow to the group and said to Satoshi, "You shouldn't have blown him off so harshly just now."

"…" Satoshi gave no response, but only looked at Risa simply. Suddenly, Risa felt herself been pulled into a warm chest with a pair of strong arms wrapping around her waist.

"What are you doing?" Risa asked in a low voice.

"Dance with me." Satoshi said, "Just take it as I need to evade these fan-girls, okay?"

Risa couldn't answer; her cheeks were flushing so red and she didn't trust her voice, for she knew her words would be come out in form of stammers. She took in Satoshi's scent and was very aware of the arms around her waist._This is supposed to be a dance_, Risa thought anxiously and placed her arms around the boy's neck. At the background, the two people could hear the other girls' whining and complaints about how lucky Risa was. Risa felt chills down her spine and she smiled nervously inwardly. However, as she and Satoshi swayed to the song, Risa started to relax. She smiled blissfully to herself, and to her blue-haired partner, she could only smile when she avoided his eyes because she froze when she looked into his sea of mesmerizing blue orbs.

_Why hasn't he loosened his arms around me?_ Risa thought desperately. No matter how much she like being this close to Satoshi, Risa wanted to also get away from him. Those heartbeats and the feeling as if being intoxicated by brandy were too cruel for her to handle. Risa wanted to get away from the boy but she didn't have the courage; she wanted to stay with him, but she didn't dare to. _I'm sure he likes someone better than me_, she thought bitterly, _I just want to stay with him a while more. Just a while more…_

"Harada-san,"

"Yes?" Risa looked up with me, blinking her eyes in confusion.

"You haven't answered me yet, that question back when we were stranded." Satoshi said. They stopped moving to the music and they were the odd pair because everyone was swaying to the slow song. Satoshi took the Risa to the small storage room at an end of the kitchen so that no one would see them, and Risa's legs just obeyed with the movement for the while she had being once again stunned by the question.

"Harada-san." Satoshi called her when he realized she wasn't responding.

"It was all a mistake." Risa said a little bit too calmly.

"Huh?"

"That day, I…it just slipped my mouth." Risa explained half-heartedly. "I didn't mean to call you 'Satoshi-kun'."

"Harada-san…"

"If I have caused any misunderstanding, I'm sorry." Risa bowed in apology. Just as she wanted to escape anymore exchange of words with the blue-haired boy, she felt her arm being grabbed from behind.

_Outside…_

"Mou, where is Satoshi-kun and Risa-chan?" Mio muttered to herself when she got enough giggles and discoveries on the class's potential couples. After all, she like snooping and the dance gave more than enough time for each individual to reveal their true inner feelings under her unknown eyes.

"Miyu-kun!" Mio spotted the brown-haired boy among the crowd and made a beeline to him. Miyu's amber eyes lit up when he saw Mio and went forward.

"Mio-chan,"

"What are you doing now?" Mio asked, eyeing a wrapped package the Miyu held in his hands.

"Putting the present onto the pile as you instructed," Miyu told her.

"Ano…about that…" Mio said with uncertainty, "Can…can I open your present now?"

"But Mio-chan," Miyu protested at once, "You should open your presents only later. It doesn't seem fair if I show you now."

"Please?" Mio pressed on. "Somehow, I want to see your present very badly. I know I should wait until it's time to open presents, but I just can't wait for yours. Please?"

"Well, you still shouldn't unwrap it," Miyu said thoughtfully. "How about this, I'll tell you what your present is, okay?"

"Sure!" Mio smiled happily, "So what is it?"

"It's a heart-shaped pendant." Miyu answered. "Although it's my first time choosing an accessory for a girl, but I really hope you'll like it."

"Well, pendants do catch my attention." Mio assured him. "I'm sure I'll like it."

"Really?"

"Hn!"

The two of them smiled at each other. And the smile turned into prolonged stare into each other's eyes. Suddenly, someone said, "We're out of Coke." It caught Mio's attention and she broke eye contact with Miyu.

"Sorry, Miyu-kun, I guess I need to refill the punch." Mio said, blushing as she remembered how she had stare at Miyu. She got a nod as a reply and went to the table to dispose the empty bottles. As she walked to the kitchen, her mind involuntarily conjured images of the handsome amber-eyes boy. Then when she realized it, she smiled in realization and said to herself, "I guess I'm having a big crush on Miyu-kun, ne?"

Suddenly, at the corner of her eye, she saw that the door of the storage room was ajar. "That won't do." Mio said with a slight frown. "Otou-san always reminds me to close the storage room in case rats or other pests got in." Then she closed the door and continued to take out the big bottles of soft drink.

_Inside the storage room…_

"That's not true." Satoshi said, and Risa jerked her arm uncomfortably in his grip. "I…"

It was then that there was a distinct click of the doorknob from the door. The two of them immediately turned to the door and Risa tried to open the door but found that it wouldn't budge.

"What…how can the door be locked?" Risa asked, afraid of being locked in.

"Otou-san made this room to be locked from the outside. Something he learned about security in the police academy." Satoshi explained, shrugging.

"So we're officially locked in?"

"I'm afraid so." Satoshi answered and sat at a side against the wall.

"What if we try to bang the door to see if anyone hears us?" Risa suggested hopefully.

"Not going to work. It's too loud outside and they won't hear us." Satoshi explained. Risa sighed and sat next Satoshi, sighing with disappointment.

"Harada-san," Satoshi spoke up in the midst of silence in the storage room.

"Yes?"

"I still insist there is a reason for how you suddenly called me Satoshi-kun."

"If you want to convince yourself with that, I can't do anything about it." Risa said in a sudden cold tone. "Why would you care anyway?"

"Will liking you be a good reason?"

Risa widened her eyes and she felt hot tears surfacing. Did she hear right? Satoshi likes her? Maybe he meant it in a friendly manner of like. She turned to look at Satoshi slowly and timidly, and saw that his cheeks were flushing bright red. His eyes stared hard into hers. The truth in his eyes showed that what he said was true, and in every way, it was sincere.

"I…I like you," Satoshi continued with much difficulty, not surprising Risa, "I really like you. Not in the friendly way but the way Niwa-kun and Harada-san are." Slowly, Risa felt his grip on her arm loosened his arm dropped back to his side. He neared Risa and when he was right next to her, he gently slid his arms around her body. "I like you, Risa-san."

Risa felt more tears sliding down her cheeks and across her gently curved lips. When Satoshi pulled away to look properly at Risa, he was shocked to see her crying.

"Why…why are you crying?" Satoshi asked nervously and took a handkerchief from his pocket and wiped her tears. "Maybe, I shouldn't have said so much."

"No," Risa began, "It's not like that." She took Satoshi's hand in her own ones as the blue-eyed boy stared at her. "I'm happy." Risa said simply as more hot tears made their wet mark across her cheek, "I'm very happy. Really, I am."

"Then why are you crying?"

"These are tears of joy, silly!" Risa told him, her cheeks flushed with slight embarrassment.

"So I wasn't mistaken when I heard you calling me Satoshi-kun at that time?" Satoshi prompted, and Risa shook his head in answer.

"So Risa-san, would you be my Sacred Maiden?" Satoshi asked with his heart racing in anticipation to hear the words from the mouth of the brown-haired girl. "That was the question I wanted to ask back at Truth or Dare."

"Yes, I will, Satoshi-kun." Risa said.

And in the moonlight streaming into the storage room, they pressed their lips against each other's with arms entangling around each other.

* * *

Hajimari: Mou, the last part ended up so badly! It was so cheesy!

Atobe: Not to mention it was way too mushy for Satoshi.

Hajimari: WHY ARE YOU HERE?! Where is Dark? How do you know it doesn't fit Satoshi's character?

Atobe: Firstly, Dark is being detained in some prison for breaking in ore-sama's house and threatening to kill me. Secondly, I read DN Angel as well. And thirdly, I'm here because I heard from Dark that you tipped him off. Not that ore-sama denies from ore-sama's beauty.

Hajimari: Argh. Go back to the Prince of Tennis section. This is DN Angel.

Atobe: Okay, okay. I just wanted to make an appearance.

Hajimari: That's irrelevant, seeing that the sections are different.

Riku: Ne, Daisuke-kun, how about the both of us be Romeo and Juliet?

Daisuke: That's not a bad idea.

Risa: Satoshi-kun, can you wear all black and pass yourself off as Dark, without the hair of course.

Dark: I HEARD THAT! I WILL NOT HAVE A HIKARI BECOME THE DREAT PHANTOM THIEF DARK!

Everyone: Where did that voice come from…?

Daisuke: He still seems to have a grudge against you, Satoshi-kun.

Satoshi: …

Hajimari: Mou, where are the usual speeches? And stop rummaging the box of costumes! The readers are going to find out something! Eh, the cameras are still rolling?! MOU!

--Goes blank--


	20. Heartshaped Pendant

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Sorry for updating so late! School started and I was dying from Indices (math) and a hell lot of other Biology and Physics crap. Anyway, pardon my vulgarities and continue to read on!

**DNAngelfanatic07**: Thanks for the review and here's the new chapter! Enjoy!

**1000 Sparkings**: Well, Satoshi has grown so he is more matured now. Anyway, enjoy this new chapter!

**Anon**: Wow, I'm glad I have a small knack in humor! Enjoy this chapter!

**Berlioz II**: Hmm…tone is really that important? Well, I'll pay attention to that in this chapter, hopefully since my English can be very bad. Gee, and I thought I learned tone in Literature for nothing. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**regina**: Sorry but Riku and Daisuke didn't get many scenes last chapter, ne? They probably won't appear much in this chapter as well but they will definitely appear in future chapters. Until then, I hope you'll continue to read this story! And for other factors, I'll probably only go into that also in later chapters. Enjoy this chapter!

**shana.rose.**: LOL! The cheesiness! Seriously! Anyway, I also do think it was kind of sweet, if I can say so myself. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Thanks for the review and enjoy this chapter!

**Littlelink048**: Roger that and here's a new chapter. Enjoy!

**CherryPie**: Lol, I kind of took that from a Taiwan serial drama but I guess it did work out great, since it kept you excited, ne? Enjoy this chapter!

**Darkened Immortal**: I'm glad you could imagine the scene! It could get really cute though if they had in the anime. Where the hell is DN Angel Season 2? Okay, that's not reliable information; I just want a season 2. And gee, please tell me you have done your holiday homework! I'll be guilty… Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**April x Aries**: I'm so glad you thought it was cute! Enjoy this chapter!

**Link Fangirl01**: I'm so glad you like it. Enjoy this chapter!

**Anime-17**: Thanks for the review and enjoy this chapter!

**HinaNaruFan4ever: **Sorry for the late update because I was dying from all my schoolwork. But now that I updated this new chapter, I hope you'll like it.

* * *

_**Chapter 20: Heart-shaped Pendant**_

Mio smiled at the party when she saw everything going so well. She sipped her cup of punch and tolerated Saehara. What can she say? She has a great tolerance level. At her corner of her eye, she spotted Riku scanning across the place as if searching for someone. Mio excused herself from the group of friends she was talking to and walked over to the seemingly lost Riku.

"Riku-chan," Mio called her from behind and the red-haired twin turned around and gave a small wave to her, "Are you looking for someone? Is it Daisuke-kun?"

"No, I'm searching for Risa." Riku told her, her eyes still wandering around the place for her brown-haired sister. "I can't seem to find her anywhere. And speaking of which, Hiwatari-kun is nowhere to be found as well."

"Satoshi-kun?!" Mio shouted in a surprised tone with a hint of worry.

Riku nodded to Mio's response. "I do hope Risa is with him. After all, I can always depend on Hiwatari-kun to take care of Risa."

"But don't you see that Risa-chan likes Satoshi-kun? Of course he'll look after her." Mio mused. When she looked back at Riku, she saw widened eyes and Mio sweat-dropped.

"You noticed as well?!" Riku shouted in dismay.

"Of…of course," Mio stuttered with Riku's outburst. "It seemed so obvious…right?"

"That is my sentiments exactly!" Riku said in contentment. "I never thought there will be another person to notice them!"

"I see." Mio nodded, and after a moment of thoughtful expression, she smiled wickedly and said to Riku, "Since they like each other, I have a feeling they're together right now." Riku nodded vigorously; that must be the only option. "So," Mio continued, "Why don't we just leave them alone?"

"Eh?"

"I mean, they should have time to themselves, right?" Mio reasoned. "Let's not report them missing."

"But what if they're not together?" Riku asked once again, worrying for her sister.

"Don't worry," Mio smiled pleasantly, "I'm positive they're together."

When Riku was satisfied with Mio's reassurance, she went away to chat with her friends. Mio smiled to herself…

_I thought there were voices from the storage room. So I wasn't wrong after all…_

With that, her smile widened with satisfaction.

One good deed well done!

…

…

…

Miyu walked to the table after many 'excuse me' directed to his classmates. He randomly picked a petit tart and put it into his mouth, drowning it with a single sip of punch. Suddenly, above all the loud chattering, a loud high-pitched voice silenced everyone. Miyu looked over to the source of the voice and saw Mio standing next to the pile of presents. Her faced beamed despite her attempt on her serious 'ahem' cough.

Amidst the silence, Mio announced, "It's time to open the presents!"

Although everyone knew it wasn't their presents, their curiosity of what laid within each package did not falter. They immediately crowded around Mio and her presents, sitting down obediently as if they were a class of kindergarten kids. The birthday girl sat down with crossed legs as well, reaching out for a bulky package.

After reading the short message of well wishes pasted on the wrapper, Mio tore away the wrapper to reveal a large size Winnie the Pooh plushie. The yellow-haired girl smiled brightly and hugged her soft present briefly before raising her head to thank the classmate who got her the yellow stuffed bear.

After many presents have been opened and revealed, as well as many thanks, the number of unwrapped presents decreased slowly. Miyu looked with anticipation as he waited for Mio to pick out his present. He had hoped very sincerely that Mio would like his present, for it was his first time choosing a gift for a girl.

However, he wasn't sure if it was just a present for a friend. Why did his heart beat irregularly when he was choosing the gift? Why is he anticipating for her reaction when she will eventually tear away the wrapper of his present? Why does he feel embarrassed when he goes near her? And why does she look so beautiful with every passing second…? Is there something more the way he treats her? Does he think of her, just as a friend?

When the amber-eyed boy realized that he was staring dreamily at Mio, he turned away. He could feel his cheeks burning with redness, and was secretly glad that everyone was excited to see what Mio received to notice his little detail. Miyu glanced briefly at one of the paintings hung in the hall, hoping that his love for art pieces would distract his attention to Mio. However, it failed very badly and he couldn't resist glancing back at her once in a while.

After the last present has been unwrapped, Mio stood up and gave a polite bow to everyone. "Everyone, thank you very much! Arigatou gozaimasu!" Her classmates beamed at her, except for Miyu, who sat there expressionless, or rather with a dazed look. When everyone got up, the brown-haired boy followed suit, not wanting to be singled between the ones standing and the ones sitting.

"Miyu-kun, would you mind helping me carry up these presents into my room?" Mio requested with a small smile.

"Sure, of course." The amber-eyed boy immediately agreed, although his confusion has yet to be cleared: where is his present? He was so sure that he placed his present at the pile but somehow, when Mio opened all her presents, his went unannounced; no thank you or any acknowledgment of his present.

"Miyu-kun," Mio said shortly and the boy looked at her blankly. "You spaced out a while back there. What are you thinking?"

The brown-haired boy looked at her innocent smile and suddenly found his heart beating fast. He turned away hastily and brushed off the issue quickly, "Nothing." With that, he took half of the pile of presents and followed Mio upstairs into her room, still deep in thoughts about the mystery of his present.

When they had reached Mio's room, they both bent and placed the presents on the floor gently (some were fragile). As Miyu was still in the process of putting presents here and there, he saw Mio holding out a box into his view.

A familiar looking box which increased his heartbeat.

The brown pine casing with several intricate designs carved on the exterior included a small lock in the middle. Miyu widened his eyes in surprise and placed all the presents on the carpeted floor quickly yet carefully. He looked up and only saw Mio with her smile. His mind raced with thoughts; he didn't understand.

Mio opened the box and a soft melodic music skipped around the room, and she closed her eyes as she listened to the pleasant sound. Miyu stood up and eyed the opened box still in Mio's possession. He was about to open his mouth until Mio looked at him serenely with a smile.

She placed the musical box on her desk, and fished out a necklace. The pendant was the main attraction, with a bright blackish-blue glass jewel in the centre of many small diamonds surrounding it, and the silver chain added to its beauty even though the whole masterpiece wasn't of genuine minerals.

"Ne, Miyu-kun," Mio started and hold up the necklace for him to see. "Can you help me put it on?"

"Su…sure." Miyu stammered a little before gathering himself and took the necklace from Mio's hand. He went behind Mio and rounded the necklace around the girl's neck. With a tinge of nervousness, he hooked the necklace's ends together and put down his hands. Mio quickly went over to her mirror, admiring the necklace from all different angles.

"Thank you, Miyu-kun." Mio smiled brightly, the pendant of the necklace glimmered even though it was of a dark colour. "I really like it!" She exclaimed.

Suddenly, Miyu's eyes widened as he hit onto a sudden unsuspecting realization.

The pendant was a present from Miyu for her, in the shape of a heart.

* * *

Everyone: THAT'S IT?! 

Hajimari: Uh…huh.

Dark: But nothing happened between Mio and Miyu! What the hell are you up to?

Hajimari: Sorry, the story has to go like this.

Mio: That's not fair…

Miyu: Maybe next chapter will be better?

Riku: Mou, and to think the cost…argh! (Everyone covers Riku's mouth)

Risa: So we hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Dark: Please review! Finally I get to say this alone!

Daisuke: What's that suppose to mean, Dark?

Dark: Never mind.


	21. True Feelings

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the delay in this chapter. I'm very busy with schoolwork so please understand! Enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Thanks for the review and enjoy this chapter!

**DNAngelfanatic07**: Oh my, the way you said it in your review, it feels like its hinting something between Satoshi and Risa…(slaps self). Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**Berlioz II**: I have to say I'm not this "sadistic" to do that. Imagine the heartbreak Saehara will feel and what if he committed suicide later?! Okay, I'm only joking, but I'm not going to write that because I've got another idea mapped out. But your idea seems kind of good though. Such a pity… Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**Anon**: I'm glad that the chapter, although short, was enjoyable for you. I'll try to write this chapter a bit longer, but I cannot gurantee though. That, I apologize. Thanks for your review and enjoy this chapter!

**Darkened Immortal**: I'm going to go on to more Mio x Miyu and Daisuke x Riku this chapter so I hope you'll like it. I haven't been giving them as much love as Satoshi and Risa, have I? Yay, you finished your homework:) Enjoy!

'**DalisaY-17'**: Thanks for the review and enjoy this chapter!

**Anime-17**: Mio is also one of my favourite characters. I really think it's a pity she died because she is really cute. Enjoy this chapter!

**Littlelink048**: Well, sometimes, people can't see what's in front of them until later, so I guess that's the case for Miyu as well. Enjoy this chapter!

**1000 Sparkings**: I know that song too! I took my inspiration from that song because it's like one of my many favourite songs! And because it was Nana Mizuki who sang it. I adore her and her voice. Okay, before I spazz again, I just have to say: enjoy this chapter! (Goes on to spazzing)

* * *

_**Chapter 21: True Feelings**_

Mondays were never a good thing. Risa sighed deeply as she walked to class, not anticipating the day ahead. When she reached the classroom, she slid open the door but saw no one except for Satoshi.

"It's rare to see you come to school this early, Risa-san." Satoshi mused as he placed fresh flowers into a vase at the teacher's table.

"I only came early because I had classroom duties," Risa snapped as she took off her coat and placed her bag on her desk.

"Too late," Satoshi replied as he sat on his chair. "I've finished everything."

Risa looked around the classroom and saw that it was true: the blackboard and whiteboard had been cleaned, the floors were swept and the cabinets dusted.

"You did everything on your own?" Risa asked.

"Of course," Satoshi replied simply and closed his eyes. Suddenly, he felt a pair of arms wrapped across his chest from behind, and a familiar scent of milk and honey entering his nostrils. His eyes opened and turned slightly.

"Stop this, Risa-san," Satoshi responded reluctantly, "I'm not used to this."

"But you like hugs, don't you?" Risa reasoned and giggled slightly when she saw him blushing.

Satoshi didn't know what to say and do except to turn his face away from Risa to hide away the redness on his cheeks. Suddenly, the door slid open again and Daisuke and Riku entered, their faces showed a badly suppressed excitement.

"You look so happy, Riku." Risa noted, "What happened?"

"It's snowing!" Riku burst out happily, almost on the verge of jumping up and down. Immediately, Risa and Satoshi went to the window and saw tiny balls of white fluff descending from the sky.

"It's true." Risa said softly as her breath misted the window. "Ne, Satoshi-kun," The blue-haired boy turned to face Risa, "The snow is really pretty, right?" Satoshi nodded and directed a handsome smile at her, and Risa's heart skipped a few beats.

"Satoshi-kun?" Riku said questioningly. She turned to Daisuke and said, "Do you know what happened, Daisuke-kun?"

"I don't," The red-haired boy shrugged, but smiled a few seconds later and said, "But I'm sure something wonderful must have happened between those two."

"Yeah, that must be it," Riku said and nodded in agreement. "No wonder Risa looked so happy since Mio-san's birthday party."

_Flashback_

"Risa! Where are you?" Riku shouted in the Hiwatari Mansion. Her loud voice was topped with the many callings for the said girl and Satoshi.

"They're over here!" Mio's voice prompted Riku, Daisuke and Miyu to the kitchen. When they arrived, they saw her standing outside the storage room with the door opened.

"Risa?" Riku said confusedly as every one of them walked over. They saw that Risa and Satoshi were asleep in a supposedly uncomfortable position, but their faces showed otherwise; they were sound asleep despite their position.

_End of flashback_

"And we had such a hard time waking Risa," Riku said with a defeated sigh.

"Maybe something happened then." Daisuke mused.

"WHAT?!" Riku suddenly shouted, her face showed pure horror.

"Not…not what you are thinking about, Riku-san," Daisuke sweat-dropped as he said.

"I…I see." Riku said softly, embarrassed by her sudden outburst.

Meanwhile, Satoshi and Risa were still admiring the snowing scene as if they hadn't heard Daisuke and Riku. They eyes followed every fluttering snow and they grinned wider at the sight of every pretty snowflake.

However, there was no denying of the most obvious thing when there is snow…

Christmas was approaching and the year was going to end.

…

…

…

The cold of the early November snow spread quickly within the school. Everyone felt their holiday spirits rising as a second tick by, even though they were scribbling madly on the last of their exam papers. Suddenly, the teacher announced the stopping of pens, the warning consequences of cheating, and the end of exams. Everyone heaved a sigh of relief as they sat quietly at their desk, waiting for their papers to be collected so that they could have fun outside from school and escape stress, no matter how temporary it may be.

The moment they were dismissed, students rushed out of the classrooms in clusters, chattering and discussing happily at the activities they were going to have the following afternoon, while others grimaced when their groups discussed about the questions from earlier on, clearly, agonizing over the loss of a few marks.

Mio sat at her desk and sighed softly, relaxed at the thought of finishing exams. "So was the exam tough?" The voice from the back prompted Mio to turn. She saw Miyu standing there with his hands in his pockets, his smile kind and warm.

He made her blushed.

"It was quite tough," Mio admitted with a slight slouch and wondered why her cheeks felt so warm all of a sudden. "But I managed to pull through!" Mio regained her composure and gave a bright smile.

"That's great!" Miyu commented and beamed at the smiling yellow-haired girl. Mio stared at him; a sudden longing filled her chest when her heart skipped a beat. She forced a smile as a polite reply and turned back to her desk, pretending to pack her bag.

"Ne, Mio-chan," A familiar voice called her this time and it wasn't Miyu. Still, she turned around and saw Risa's cheerful face. "You want to go out with us?" The brown-haired twin asked. "It's the end of exams and we ought to enjoy ourselves now." She reasoned yet again.

"Sure." Mio agreed with an excited nod. At least now, she has her friends to occupy her thoughts of Miyu.

"Kinomoto-kun, come with us." Risa offered to the amber-eyed boy. Mio froze on the spot, but succeeded in maintaining her composure after a short while. She forced a bright smile and added, "Come along with us, Miyu-kun!"

Her smile was the best persuasion, and Miyu was quickly swept off from his resolution of not associating with her. He knew his true feelings, and that scared him. Rejection scared him. He didn't want to take a risk. If he confessed, not only would he lose the girl of his dreams, but a precious friend would be lost as well. There was a fifty percent chance of losing and gaining, and he wasn't ready to risk that fifty percent.

Now that Miyu was traversing their way with Daisuke, Satoshi, the Harada twins and Mio to the amusement park, leaving snow tracks behind the path they've walked, he firmly believed that love was a powerful thing indeed. And also a very perplexed one as well.

He sighed deeply but silently and secretly glanced at Mio. His air of sangfroid somehow vanished when he looked at her; his heart skipped beats again, a feeling not stranger to him developed in his chest, spreading itself excitedly across. It wasn't the same feeling he felt towards Riku previously, because this feeling was stronger and he knew. Perhaps he only liked Riku without realizing that it was only the friendly type. Perhaps it was just a "like"; only that.

But Mio was different. She jerked a heartstring in him.

"We're here!" Risa's excited voice broke him from his train of thoughts. He brightened up, not knowing if it was the euphoria in Risa's voice or the statuesque of the amusement park. With the series of refits over the past few months, the amusement park was almost an idyllic site. Even from the outside, all of them could see something waiting for them within the theme park. They quickly bought the tickets and entered, their eyes almost shining at the place of fun and many laughter.

"Where should we go first?" Riku asked with hesitance, looking at every ride there was. The group was torn apart between choices; everything seemed as though they promised a time of great fun.

"How about we go onto that rollercoaster first?" Risa pointed behind, and everyone turned to the direction of Risa's finger. They beamed gladly and approved immediately. Everyone except Daisuke.

"Th…that?" The red-haired boy said weakly. "It looks terrifying." All blood was drained from his face as his knees went jelly, if not for the bones within.

"You're afraid of that, Niwa-kun?" Risa asked, tilting her head to a side in question. It wasn't mocking and Daisuke knew, but he still couldn't shake off that uneasy feeling inside him. As he saw the people on the current ride being turned upside-down, he got goose bumps even though he saw that they were screaming with excitement and joy. One has to take more than a few laughs to get him onto the rollercoaster.

"Daisuke-kun, are you afraid of that rollercoaster?" Riku asked, her expression worried as a frown tainted her gentle features.

"No, it's just…" Daisuke said quickly, sensing a small disappointment in his girlfriend. With a deep sigh, he said, "Alright, let's go onto that rollercoaster."

Risa and Mio cheered happily and ran towards the huge gigantic ride with Satoshi and Miyu chasing after, abandoning the red-haired couple behind. As they walked slowly, Riku stole a glance at Daisuke, her heart skipping a beat.

"You know, you don't have to do this."

Daisuke turned and looked at Riku with a surprised expression. The girl didn't falter but only stared back at him with an angelic smile. "It's okay if you don't want to go onto that rollercoaster." Riku said again.

"I…" Daisuke was speechless, somewhat touched by how thoughtful Riku was. With a determination swelling inside him, he said firmly, "I want to go onto that rollercoaster." He took Riku's hand inside his palm, "I'll…I'll try to be brave."

_10 minutes later…_

"You shouldn't have gone up to the rollercoaster if you didn't want to." Riku scolded the dizzy red-haired boy as he collapsed onto the bench.

"I see stars." Daisuke muttered as he placed a thin piece of cool wet tissue over his face, a mixture of lemon and fresh mint fragrance wafted into his nostrils.

"Sorry, Niwa-kun!" Risa apologized profusely. "I didn't know you were afraid of rollercoaster."

"It's…it's alright." Daisuke replied weakly and took off the towel from his face to smile at Risa, assuring her.

"Here," Mio handed him the bottle of cold mineral water she had just bought from the shop nearby. Daisuke received it with a small mutter of thanks and unscrewed the cap. He drank the water and gave a relieved sigh.

"I guess we would only continue after you're fine, Niwa-kun." Satoshi said with the same monotonous voice, but every one of them could sense his goodwill.

"I'm fine." Daisuke reassured them. "I'll just rest here for a bit. All of you can just continue me." He flashed a sincere smile at them. However, they didn't relent; too keen on making sure the red-haired boy was well, insisting that all of them shall go together.

"I'll stay here with Daisuke-kun, then." Riku suggested. "All of you should go and have some fun. When you have enough of those rollercoaster, you can meet us at that fast food restaurant over there." She pointed to the other direction.

There was guilt in them, but after much reassurance from both Riku and Daisuke, the remaining four friends went ahead with the rollercoaster, deciding to go onto the really frightening ones before all six of them gather again for less scarier rides.

When Daisuke and Riku had entered the fast food restaurant with a cool breeze greeting them, they found a nice six-seats area and settled on them. They ordered burgers and milkshake for lunch before Satoshi, Miyu, Risa and Mio arrive.

"Riku-san, are you sad that you couldn't ride those rollercoaster because of me?" Riku stopping chewing on her burger to turned sideways to look at Daisuke and his guilty expression. "I know you really like the excitement. I'm really useless at being weak-hearted at these things, ne?" The red-haired boy had a slight frown on his face and turned back to the front, not wanting to face Riku and the shame of his fear; even people younger than him love those rides.

Suddenly, he felt a warm hand on his face, willing him to look at Riku. The red-haired girl didn't look angry, but only smiles brightened her face.

"I'm not disappointed at all, Daisuke-kun." Riku said as her hand caressed his cheek. "Fears of rollercoaster are common. You're not the only one." Daisuke could only stare at her, speechless. Riku let down her hand and leaned against his shoulder. "If I can even share a single second with you, I don't mind not going up those rides at all." Her pleasant voice drifted into his ears, as if like an angel whispering sweet secrets. "So don't mind it, okay?"

Daisuke nodded and Riku felt it. She closed her eyes briefly, listening to her own heartbeat that lost its rhythm.

Yes, this was what true feelings would feel like.

* * *

Mio: Aww…that's so sweet! 

Riku and Daisuke: (Blushes)

Risa: I wish there would be more such moments between Satoshi-kun and I.

Satoshi: (Mutters) Don't count on it.

Risa: What did you say? (Vein pulsing)

Satoshi: Nothing.

Dark: A few flaws but quite a good chapter for the likes of you.

Hajimari: What the hell?! And besides, who let you judge my story anyway?

Dark: No one. I just gave myself permission.

Hajimari: That's illogical.

Miyu: Anyway, readers, we all hope you have enjoyed this chapter.

Mio: Please review! Ne, Miyu-kun, wouldn't it be sweet if the both of us have more romantic scenes?

Miyu: … (Blushes very red.) (Faints)

Mio: Miyu-kun! Miyu-kun! Please hang on! Miyu-kun!


	22. November Love

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Sorry for the late update. All of you should understand how much I had suffered this January because of – and especially – math. Anyway, read on!

**Berlioz II**: Actually, I don't mind going on a rollercoaster in winter because it feels really nice. Anyway, for Daisuke, just take it as he has a phobia of rollercoaster. Jumping off cliffs and rooftops can be quite different from rollercoaster. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**Anime-17**: I want to see Satoshi blush as well! Too bad they don't show much in the anime. Enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Thanks for the review! Enjoy this chapter!

**DNAngelfanatic07**: Here's a new chapter so enjoy!

**Littelink048**: Well, flying around are quite different from rollercoaster so yeah. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**1000 Sparkings**: I'm so glad you like the chapter. I hope this new one keeps you happy as well!

**Darkened Immortal**: Thanks for the review! I was afraid of rollercoaster when I was little as well but I love it now, a lot! Enjoy this chapter! And good luck for your 10-page report :)

**Anon**: I'm glad you like the last part! Enjoy this chapter as well!

* * *

_**Chapter 22: November Love**_

It seemed and felt like ages, almost years, before she saw him when in fact, she saw Miyu just a while ago. His amber eyes were so alluring that Mio could hardly push the image from her mind. The yellow-haired girl rested her chin on her palms, her elbows beginning to ache against her pinewood desk. However, she didn't put down her arms, but only stared at the window in front of her, overlooking the other side of Azumano through sheets of white snow in the dark night sky.

The weather had been on and off, caught between the decision of bringing joy with its soft fluffy snow, or be sadistic and laugh silently at the people shoving snow from their doorways.

Even Hiwatari Kei had been irritated.

The snow continued to fly past Mio's window. The yellow-haired girl occasionally spotted some snowflakes, and asked herself how many such patterns were there.

"Mio-chan, do you have any towels?"

Mio immediately sprung around from her chair to see the two Harada twins entering her room, closing the door behind them softly. They stopped abruptly when they saw Mio and Riku immediately said with a worried tone, "You can't get out of bed, Mio-san!"

"That's right," Risa added on, "You're having a fever. You should rest."

"I'm fine, Risa-chan, Riku-chan." Mio assured them with a smile. "It isn't everyday you, Miyu-kun and Daisuke-kun come over to our house to spend a night. I'm even sorry not being a good host."

"Don't say that," Risa said, "We're the ones troubling you."

"Too bad the snow isn't going to stop anytime soon." Riku piped up. "In this weather, it's impossible to get home. The car won't be able to drive through the snow and walking is a futile option." She ended with a small sigh.

The three girls looked out and saw that the snow was as bad as ever, coming down so mercilessly that it seemed like a mini snowstorm.

As it so happens that the weather in that afternoon was greater than anyone had ever wished. Daisuke and everyone had gone to Satoshi and Mio's house – or rather mansion – for ice-skating at the big frozen pond within the Hiwatari residence. Unfortunately, at around dusk, the snow had changed its mind, sweeping large sheets of snow across town. Daisuke and everyone else had no choice but to spend the night at the mansion.

"You don't like this house?" Mio asked, tilting her head, frowning slightly.

"No, of course not," Riku said quickly, waving her hands carelessly to indicate her intention. "But it's just that we feel bad imposing on you."

"Don't worry, it is fine. So you said you needed towels?" Mio changed the subject with the question. The two twins nodded. Mio opened the wardrobe and handed the towels as well as some of her own clothes to them for a change, and they went off to the other spare bathrooms for a shower. Mio resumed looking at the snow outside, her heart throbbing as she silently thought about Miyu.

After a while, a knock resounded in her ears and even without a respond from her, the door opened automatically. The new visitor caught her eye and Mio felt as though her temperature had jumped up to another ten degrees or more. The amber-eyed boy smiled at her while showing her the tray of milk and cookies. He placed them on the table nearby and saw the Mio was just staring at him without any notion of speaking. With a confused expression, he said gently, "Mio-chan?"

The yellow-haired girl jerked as her name was called and felt her heart beating faster as he approach her. She saw him coming nearer. _What is he doing? What is he doing?_ Mio asked herself nervously, fearing and anticipating for his touch at the same time. Suddenly, she felt something warm touch her forehead and she open her eyes widely, realizing that Miyu's hand was against her forehead.

"That's great," Miyu said in a seemingly relieved tone and retrieved his hand from Mio. "Your fever seems to be gone, or at least, the temperature has gone down." Miyu explained, and then with a thoughtful look, he mused, "I wondered why your face was so red just now."

Mio widened her eyes more and brushed away the topic by saying, "My face was not red just now! I think you might have seen things." She turned away from him, another tint of red added to the previous one.

"Probably," Miyu smiled. Mio saw that his eyes were examining her, and it made her blush. Suddenly, his loud voice shocked her and transported her from her dreamland very quickly. "Hey, are you still wearing the necklace I gave you?" Miyu pointed to the girl's neck, where the chain with a heart-shaped pendant was hung round.

"Yup!" Mio nodded enthusiastically, "I really like this necklace so I wear it everyday!"

"That's great," Miyu said with a softer voice, "I'm glad you like it."

Mio saw his eyes, kind and gentle, and warm. The sincere glint in his voice made Mio suddenly said, "Miyu-kun,"

"Yes?"

"I…all this time, I…I think I…" Then taking in a deep breath, she burst out, "I think I really like…"

"Mio-chan, time to take your medicine," Kei entered the room uninvited, and Mio could swore that a 1000kg stone just fallen on her head at that point of time.

"Then I shall go back to Hiwatari-kun's room," Miyu excused himself. But then, he stopped midway and turned back to Mio and asked, "What did you said you like again?"

"Oh," Mio's mind worked quickly and she said in her usual cheerfulness, "I'm just saying I really like ice-cream."

"I see," Miyu nodded knowingly. "Goodnight then."

"Goodnight." Mio replied and watched him exit the room.

Kei, who had witness everything, asked with concern, "Mio-chan, did I disturbed the two of you at the wrong timing?"

"Of…of course not!" Mio waved her hands carelessly. "Why would you think that way?"

"Nothing. I'm just curious." Kei replied and silently thought to himself, _I was just like you, Mio-chan. Just like you._

As Miyu walked back to Satoshi's room, he could still hear his own heartbeat from before.

"_I…all this time, I…I think I…I think I really like…"_

Miyu sighed and muttered in a volume only audible to himself, "Why would I even think she really like me?"

And his lone shadow passed the walls of the well-lit corridor.

…

…

…

By next morning, the snow had cleared, and birds that were capable of the surviving the cold sang cheerfully in the district. Mio look out at her window and smiled at the white scenery. The snow had partially covered the whole town due to yesterday's sudden outrage but the mood wasn't dampened as Mio saw little children constructing many snowmen while others had snowball wars. Suddenly, her eyes saw a little bird jumping gently onto a thin branch on the tree near her window. As it neared the end of the branch, the little bird was ready to turn around and walk back. However, just as it did, it fell, and Mio looked in horror. Quickly, she slid open the window and saw that the bird fell on the soft cushion of the snow. However, that didn't stop her from worrying. Grabbing a coat from her chair, she put it on and rushed down to help the poor creature.

…

…

"Mio, it's time for breakfast!" Kei called as he knocked on the door. However, there was no reply so the police officer tried again. After moment of futile effort, Kei lost patience and opened the door to enter.

"Mio-chan, I knocked so many times and…" He stopped and scanned the room. No sign of his adopted daughter. "Mio?" He said softly to himself and he felt a pang on his chest. He took big and fast strides to the dining hall, where Satoshi, Daisuke and everyone were having breakfast made personally by Kei.

"This is good." Risa mused as she took a second bite of the bacon.

"Otou-san went for cookery lessons." Satoshi explained.

"Did anyone of you saw Mio?" Kei asked the first thing he entered the dining hall.

"No, we didn't." The blue-haired boy answered coolly and also questioningly, just that he didn't show it.

"What happened?" Daisuke spoke up, taking notice of the police officer's worried expression.

"I was calling Mio out for breakfast but there was no answer. So I went in but she wasn't there; she wasn't in her room. Why do so many things happen here?" He asked, completely absorbed in his fatherly mode. Risa and Satoshi went red when they heard the last; it was obviously hinting the time where they fell off the cliff and when they were trapped in the storeroom.

Quickly, the task of the searching grounds for each of them had been decided; Daisuke and Satoshi were to look on the first level, Risa and Riku on the second level, Kei was to search the backyard while Miyu helped with the search on the outside of the mansion, within the areas of the gates.

"Mio-chan! Mio-chan!" Miyu shouted as he went around the compound to search the yellow-haired girl. His heart pounded with worry. _Where is she?_

His legs ran faster, scanning every area with precision just in case he missed the yellow-haired girl. He was worried; it didn't feel safe that she had gone missing, and Miyu tried pushing away any possible negative thoughts. "Mio-chan," He called her loudly, hoping Mio would show up upon hearing his voice.

As Miyu was ready to round the curve of the house, he heard a distinctive and familiar voice. "Tori-san, I'm so glad you're not hurt."

Miyu immediately followed the direction of the voice. And there, he found her, legs stretched out and her body leaning against the tree, her hands in a protective cup-shaped around a small bird. And then, her smile; so pure and sincere.

"Mio-chan," Miyu called and the girl's head instantly raised, her expression surprised and pleased.

"Miyu-kun," Mio said as the brown-haired boy approached her, "I saw this bird fall down from the tree from my window, so I decided to come down to rescue it." Miyu bent and squatted down to level himself with Mio. "But it seems that the bird is fine and…" Mio stopped, her expression shocked, and her heart beat faster than ever. She was dazed, wondering if she was in her dreamland.

If that pair of arms wrapped around her were Miyu's.

_Why? Why is there such a fast beat on his chest? Why is it beating so loudly?_ Mio thought, breathing in the cool winter wind and the amber-eyed boy's scent.

"Do you feel my heartbeat, Mio-chan?" Miyu asked, his breath tickling her ear. Mio nodded in his embrace, her arms coming up to his back, pressing him to her.

"I did."

"Mio-chan, you know," Miyu pulled Mio away gently and looked into her dark grey eyes. "I have always liked you. Always."

"Me too, Miyu-kun. Me too." Tears streamed down her tender cheeks as she confessed. She was happy. She was very happy, so glad that he likes her.

Their lips met briefly for a small kiss, and as their lips touched, they could feel a surge of satisfaction and a powerful feeling overwhelmed them; so comfortable and securing. When their lips unlocked, they embraced each other again, their arms wrapped round each other tighter.

Mio closed her eyes. There was just Miyu with her.

…

…

…

From afar, Kei witnessed everything and was glad that Lady Luck was with Miyu, resulting in the decision that the brown-haired boy should search this compound. It was pure luck and perhaps destiny. He knew, from the previous night, that Mio likes Miyu. It was from experience. He was a teenager once, and just like people, he had fallen in love before, and out as well, obviously. He walked away, deciding to leave the two new lovebirds alone, smiling gladly for his Mio.

The bird had already disappeared.

* * *

Everyone: (stares blankly)

Hajimari: Why aren't you guys saying anything? You always have comments in one way or another.

Mio: Well, I'm happy in this chapter so all I have to say is yay! (Starts being hyper)

Dark: (Scoffs) Your first success after many failures.

Hajimari: (Vein pulsing)

Daisuke: But this story is almost finished, right?

Satoshi: That's too bad.

Dark: WHAT?! IT'S ENDING?!

Hajimari: Well, there_are _two more chapters to go. So, yeah, it's ending.

Dark: But what about me? I haven't made any appearance! You cannot shove away the star of the original D.N Angel.

Hajimari: Krad also didn't appear.

Dark: Who cares about the bastard? He can be ignored.

Krad: How dare you Dark! Even though my show time was shorter, I acted better than you! (outraged)

Dark: (Ignores Krad. To Hajimari) So pretty please, a chapter with me inside?

Hajimari: No.

Krad: Hey, Dark, don't ignore me!

Risa: (Looks at frenzy and sweat-drop)

Riku: (Sigh) Anyway, we hope you enjoy this chapter.

Satoshi: Please review!

Dark: It's just one chapter with me inside! Just one will do!

Hajimari: No.

Krad: Are you listening, Dark? Dark?!

Dark: Just one chapter!

Krad: Don't ignore me!

(Switches off)


	23. Hall of Fancies

Disclaimer: I do not own Gundam Seed

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: Hello everyone, sorry for the late update! I was having severe writer's block because I was fretting over this second-last chapter. To have a long chapter, or not to have? Well, I don't have much of a choice because this chapter will have to be naturally long. I'm sorry for the long A/N but I just want to warn you for this extremely long chapter. I'll try not to be long-winded so hopefully, you won't be bored with the length. Anyway, enjoy!

**Berlioz II**: Okay, I feel that was really random, considering that I don't really what "Navajo Joe" is about. Well, thanks for the review! Somehow, I found the last part pretty amusing. Enjoy this chapter!

**DNAngelfanatic07**: Sorry for the late update. Well, all things must come to an end so I hope you'll continue to enjoy this chapter!

**Anime-17**: Thanks for the review! I'm so glad that you like the previous chapter. Enjoy this one!

**Link Fangirl01**: Thanks for the review! For starters, I wouldn't say pinning after Riku, because that would be quite mean for Miyu. I mean, Miyu is a nice guy and all. Enjoy this chapter!

**Anon**: Great to know my skit is being loved. Thanks for the review and enjoy this chapter!

**Littlelink048**: Your review makes me so sad! Now that I think about it, I really do love this story because it had been enjoyable to write (let's ignore the usage of words and sentence structure plus the long-windedness!). Anyway, enjoy this chapter. I shall save all my thanks and gratitude for next chapter, okay? :)

**CresantMoonFox**: I'm so glad you like it! Hope you'll enjoy this chapter as well!

* * *

_**Chapter 23: Hall of Fancies**_

Riku sat in the car with Risa as it drove to their school. The red-haired girl clutched the ends of her dress tightly; uncertainty and doubts rose up to her mind.

They were going to the school's annual costume party which was held at the end of the year. It was a time when students enjoy themselves after a year of tremendous stress of schoolwork and when final-year students breakdown in tears.

However, Riku wasn't in the mood for reminiscence, something she was sure Risa is doing as her head rested on the windowpane and a blank expression overcome her face.

"Risa," Riku broke the silence. The brown-haired twin turned to look at her sister, a questioning look shown on her face. "Are you sure I look nice with this?" Riku asked.

"Riku," The younger twin sighed, "You've been worrying that for the past two days."

"I know, but…"

"Niwa-kun is going to love the dress, Riku." Risa said firmly, placing an encouraging hand on her shoulder. The reassurance didn't propel her confidence. "Besides, don't all dresses look like this? You are going to dress up as Juliet for Daisuke." Risa reasoned.

At the mentioned of the theme of her costume, Riku couldn't resist the smile crawling across her lips. Weeks ago, Daisuke and she had decided to dress up as Romeo and Juliet, after much persuasion from Satoshi, Mio, Miyu and Risa. It wasn't a bad idea, until Riku felt unconfident about her dress on that particular day. The dress had been specifically chosen by Risa for her sister, since she was the more fashionable one. They had gone to the tailor and gotten it custom-made so as to fit Riku.

The dress was of a light-blue colour, frills along the collar, sleeves and the ends of the dress. Few ribbons decorated the dress as well, much thanks to Risa as she insisted. The material was comfortable, as Riku noted immediately when it slipped over her body, and even with minimum years of experience, she could instantly tell that it was made of cotton with traces of velvet and cashmere.

However, no matter how nice the dress was and how beautiful she looked that evening, Riku was still unsure of herself despite many words of encouragement and assurance from Risa. She played continuously with the hems of the dress and a tingle will come across every once in a while.

"Come on, Riku. You look really pretty and I'm sure Niwa-kun will think so too!" A hint of annoyance was slowly crawling into her voice. Riku sensed it and didn't comment any further; it was like adding small droplets of fuel into a potentially raging fire.

When the car came to a smooth stop outside Azumano Middle School, the twins alighted from the car. Riku tried to look normal and steady, but her nervousness got the better of her. Her heart pounded against her ribs, anticipating for Daisuke's comments and at the same time, fearing them.

"You can do this, Riku!" Risa told her sister, encouragement clearly felt in her tone and words. The red-haired twin could only nod slowly. She turned towards the entrance of the school, gulping. As they walked in, Riku eyed Risa's costume, envy almost overcame her. Even though her sister wasn't wearing any extravagant like her, Riku could almost see an angel in her. Probably because she was an angel that evening, for that lovely pure white dress fitted comfortably for her and above her head was an attached halo made from a wire and white feathers. Looking back, Riku wondered why she hasn't chosen something simple yet elegant.

"Riku-san, Harada-san," A familiar voice called from behind. The twins turned instantly to see the handsomely dressed Daisuke and Satoshi. The twins lowered their red faces as they saw their own companions for the evening. Daisuke wore a royal blue coat with linings of gold and silver. Beneath was a simple white blouse with a plain black bow, which simplicity created a wonderful effect on a Romeo that he was. Satoshi's costume, however, was not the flashiest. He wore a typical brown trench coat with a cap which has checkered patterns on the inside. Within the trench coat was a simple white blouse with a brown tie.

Ah, the simplicity of Sherlock Holmes.

"Sa…Satoshi-kun!" Risa cried loudly while pointing the accusingly at the blue-haired boy. "You're…you're…!"

"A detective," Satoshi finished the sentence for her. "I figured just as much." He added sarcastically.

"So unoriginal!" Risa ignored his sarcasm and continued. "Have you no creativity."

"The last time I checked," Satoshi started to retort, "You said you wanted to dress up more elaborately. I guess a piece of white dress and a halo really is elaborate. Wow."

Within few short seconds, Risa and Satoshi had entered a full-fledged bicker. Riku and Daisuke sweat-dropped, wondering how these two people could be a couple. Enemies were more appropriate as a description.

"Ah, welcome, everyone!" A familiar voice rang cheerfully in their ears.

They turned to see Mio in her gypsy costume and Miyu followed closely behind her, looking very handsome with his vampire costume.

"Welcome, everyone." Miyu bowed graciously like what a non-vampire Count Dracula would possibly do in the presence of great people.

"Why are the two of you so early?" Risa asked.

"Have you forgotten?" Mio said.

"We're part of the décor committee for this year's costume party." Miyu explained, and the other four friends nodded in understanding.

"So step this way, ladies and gentlemen! We promise a fun-filled evening!" Mio declared happily, half-pushing Risa and Riku into the school hall with the three boys following behind them.

The hall was clearly decorated with much effort. And the four new guests opened their mouths in wonderment, amazed at the décor. There were streamers and tinsels on the walls, balloons held together with ribbons were placed firmly up on the walls and other splendid decorations.

"Don't you think we did a good job?" Mio asked.

"Of course!" Risa immediately cried out, her eyes twinkling. "I never thought that the usually dull hall could be transformed into something this amazing." And the others nodded their heads in approval.

The soft melodic music that has been lingering in the hall was tuned down to a stop. It was dark outside, contributing to the darkness when the all the lights in the hall were suddenly switched off. Students looked up from wherever they are, anxious and excited for the principal to declare the party open. A single bright light suddenly shone on the stage where the principal was standing. After a long boring speech about how he was glad that everyone was here and all the propaganda, the crowd of students burst into cheers and applauded loudly, and it sure wasn't for the sake of the "heart-warming" speech the principal had just given.

Two emcees for the evening came onto the stage, dressed in their respective costumes of a good witch that was probably portrayed from Wizard of Oz and a very cliché fairy. Their speeches weren't long, so the students didn't mind as much.

"And remember, some students of the party committee will be camouflaged among you guys to pick out winners of "best-looking costume", "best couple costume" and so on," one of the emcees said in an excited tone, as if she was a possible candidate for the award.

"So then, enjoy the Costume Party!" Both girls said enthusiastically and the student body cheered. The hall suddenly turned from the initial darkness to a sea of coloured lights that was expected to change colour at each interval. For now, the hall was a sea of red light.

There were pop songs booming from the loudspeakers at a moderate volume to set the mood. The food tables were already crowded, and the students who were in charge of the food brought out more dishes, desperately trying to meet the students' need.

Risa looked around for Satoshi and the others. Apparently, she had lost them while grabbing a sandwich from the food table. As she meandered through the crowd in hopes of luck to search for her friends, she felt her hand being grabbed from behind. She looked back, expecting to see Satoshi but was confused when she saw that it was only an acquainted classmate.

"Harada-san, would you like to dance with me?" The guy asked, his blush hidden by the dark bright red light.

"I guess it's o…" Before Risa could finish her sentence, she felt another hand grabbing her arm and pulling her backwards. The brown-haired girl gasped in surprise and regained her balance after the short stumble. She looked up and saw a tall blue-haired boy, standing protectively in front of her.

"Satoshi-kun!" Risa called out in surprise, relief and joy.

"She's my dance partner for the evening." Satoshi said monotonously and gave the guy a sharp look, who got so scared that he gave an apologetic bow before hurrying away.

"You're so mean to him, Satoshi-kun." Risa said when Satoshi faced her again. "He only wanted to dance with me."

"Sure he can dance," Satoshi replied, "But not with you."

The crowd surrounding the two of them gave confused expressions and murmurs rose. _"Are they a couple now, Harada-san and Satoshi-sama?" "It seems highly possible." "No way! Satoshi-sama is not single anymore?!"_ Risa sweat-dropped at all the comments and tugged on Satoshi's sleeve. Sure she had expected to be labeled on the day when they became a couple, but she hasn't really given much thought to Satoshi's fan-girls. Now, as she felt her spine tingling, she was sure she should device a plan to avoid the fan-girls as much as possible.

However, Satoshi clearly gave no hints of discomfort. He took Risa's hand and hooked his other arm around her waist. The DJ, who had witness the scene, changed the music into a softer one and turned up the volume.

"It…it's kind of early for a slow song, right?" Risa asked nervously. She could feel the closeness between her and Satoshi, and his arms around her body as he held her close. Risa blushed ferociously and placed her hand on his shoulders so that it wouldn't seem as though she was unwilling. They swayed to the music and Risa noticed that some of the other students were doing so as well.

"_They're really a couple!" "I'm so jealous!"_

Risa knew she should be irritated, but she couldn't. Being held so close to Satoshi feels so right, and she could closely examine his every feature; how his hair so naturally blue, his eyes through his spectacles so mesmerizing and how his masculine cologne swept through her nose.

Satoshi touched her forehead with his, and the brown-haired girl looked up abruptly, slightly surprised.

"I love you, Harada Risa." His husky voice ringing in her ears.

"And I love you too, Hiwatari Satoshi." She replied. The moment seems so right for it, and their lips touched naturally.

_With Daisuke and Riku..._

Riku was starting to get back to her confident self after so many compliments from her friends about her dress. Daisuke stared at her dazedly, and Riku blushed so hard she just have to ask, "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I…I just think you look really pretty tonight, Riku-san." He said, cheeks turning red.

The two of them stood in silence, glancing at each other once in a while. Daisuke knew that he wasn't like Satoshi or Miyu, who would propose a dance when the soft music was being played through the loudspeakers. Both of them were just as shy, even throughout the few months they had been dating.

"Riku-san, let's dance." Daisuke said bravely in one breath, his face like an over-ripe tomato. He saw Riku nodding slowly and extended his hand to her. She accepted and they walked gracefully to the dance floor. The soft music was sort of a jazz, giving the hall a more romantic feel, especial thanks to the rotating pink and red lights, trademark colours of valentine's day.

Daisuke held Riku close and he could feel her head resting on his shoulder as they swayed to the music. His heart beat quickly and caught a whiff of Riku's perfume. His heart finally calmed, and began to enjoy the slow dancing. His arms wrapped around Riku protectively and he rested his chin on Riku's head for he was taller than her. Riku smiled as she was tucked comfortably in Daisuke's chest, inhaling his cologne along with his natural scent.

They didn't need words. They knew each other's feelings very well.

_With Mio and Miyu..._

"Mio-chan, can you bring these drinks to the table?" A girl requested the yellow-haired committee member. "All the stuff on the food table had been cleared pretty quickly."

"Sure!" Mio replied, being her helpful and cheerful self. She carried the box of concentrated cordial and mineral water to the table. She admitted to herself that it as indeed heavy, but her pride and determination wouldn't let her give up. Her arms were already sore; her lean arms do not allow her to do rough work.

Suddenly, the box suddenly gave a slip and Mio tried to hold it firmer but failed. It slipped partially from her fingers and she gave a small scream for a slight lack of balance. Somehow, she didn't feel her fingers giving slip to something or even the weight of the box for that matter. She looked up and saw Miyu, his expression nonchalant with a small smile.

"Thank you, Miyu-kun!" Mio said gratefully and stood up properly.

When they reached the food table, Miyu and Mio helped to arrange the bottles of drinks on the table, while the remainder was placed below the table in its original box. They stood up together and heaved a sigh of relief, for the heavy burden on their arm has being lifted off.

Miyu and Mio turned to look at each other, their eyes locking onto one another's. Mio could feel his amber eyes burning through hers, scanning her at different angles. Perhaps it was the costume that Mio had decided on, but Miyu had thought that she looked enigmatically beautiful as a gypsy that she was.

"Let's dance, Miyu-kun!" Mio suggested quickly and held Miyu's hand, leading him onto the dance floor. The amber-eyed boy smiled at Mio's candor, her amicability growing onto him as she wrapped her arms around, as if wanting her gesture to be returned by another gesture and his feelings of love to be showered onto her.

Miyu rested his hands on her hips and placed his chin on Mio's head. He could smell her fruit-scented hair and a lovely perfume with a lingering scent. They swayed to the music awkwardly, as they have never taken any dance lessons before. Besides, swaying wasn't that hard anyway.

Any awkwardness vanished later in thin air as the couple got used to the rhythm of the jazzy song. Their foreheads touched each other's, and Mio could smell his minty breath and his lips so inviting in the hall washed with the lights of seductive red. Slowly, their lips neared without their permission and knowledge, but as the electricity flowed through them when their lips met, there was only an air of sangfroid between them, idyllic yet with many mixtures of feelings.

Around them, many couples were doing the same cliché things, hugging, kissing and whispering sweet nothings to each other. Other students who weren't attached yet admired their Prince Charming from afar, hoping for their feelings to be returned. For some, it was happening already when one of them made the first move.

It was a costume party, a party that should have been all about facades and deceptive frontage and character, but love was in the air in its truest genuine form.

* * *

Hajimari: Wow, that was over 3000 words, the longest chapter I've written so far in my history in fanfiction(dot)net!

Riku: Congrats, Hajimari, you've completed chapter 23!

Hajimari: Though I do apologize for the long-windedness.

Dark: After weeks and weeks of writer's block, that is.

Hajimari: (Vein pulsing)

Daisuke: Anyway, everyone, just to let you know, the supposed epilogue, "Mitsukedayou" had been taken off.

Dark: Yeah, because Hajimari had been such an indecisive freak. Not that she isn't now.

Hajimari: That's it! (Runs berserk)

Risa: Calm…calm down! We still need to appear for next chapter!

Riku: Brace yourself!

Satoshi: It's such a noisy commotion.

Miyu: Then I guess we'll have to end this quickly. Now then, thanks for reading and we hoped you enjoyed it! Review please! So Hajimari can continue the next chapter.

Satoshi: So you guys better review…

Daisuke: (Sweat-drops) Hiwatari-kun, you're scaring everyone.

Satoshi: I'm getting out of here (flashes disapproving look at people in the background).


	24. I Won't Forget

Disclaimer: I do not own D.N Angel.

A/N: This week has been rather good, due to the fact that there wasn't any writer's block whatsoever and I achieved a Bronze for my Girl Guides test work and many other things! Though I wouldn't say Math and Geography are on my list of 'best things that happened to me', but let's not let certain things put us down, shall we? One day, I'll conquer Math!! (Evil laughs)

Anyway, let's get on with it.

**Berlioz II**: I, too, believe that it will be the end of me. But you'll never know when I will return, after all, I do love writing one-shots. Enjoy this chapter while it lasts!

**DNAngelfanatic07**: Thank you for the review! It really gives me encouragement to continue with this chapter. Enjoy!

**Anime-17**: I'm glad you like it. For a moment there, I was so worried everyone would think each dance of each couple is cliché. Thanks for the review and enjoy this finale!

**Anon**: Thanks for the review! I'm quite sad to know this story is ending because it has been my favourite fan fiction to write so far. However, be on a lookout for me. I'm might return with a one-shot (not a story because it'll take up too much time). You'll never know. Enjoy this chapter!

**Littlelink048**: Sorry, folk, but sad to say, all good things must come to end. However, I'm thankful for having such a loyal reader like you. I might return with a one-shot though. Only time will tell. Enjoy this chapter!

**reveriemetherlance08**: Pressure…! Just kidding. I'm quite glad you expected something from me. That just motivates to write better! Enjoy this chapter!

**ffgirlmoonie**: Thanks for the review! Though I have no idea who is Mamoru and Usagi. Anyway, enjoy this chapter!

**Hiwatari Risa**: Thanks for the review! Enjoy this chapter!

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**Epilogue: I Won't Forget**

Riku stood at the counter of the kitchen, stirring the pot of chicken stew that was bubbling gently. The fragrance satisfied Riku and she switched off the stove. She smiled in approval and placed the pot on a piece of cloth laid out on the ceramic counter.

"Do you need help, Riku-chan?" A feminine voice asked. Riku turned and saw her mother-in-law standing at the door, her face full of life and joy despite her in her forties.

"It's okay." Riku said with a smile. "I'll manage it."

"Don't be so shy in asking, Riku-san." A man Riku recognized as her father-in-law, Kosuke, appeared at the door behind her mother-in-law. "Emiko is considered world-class when it comes to cooking." He smiled at his wife.

"You think too highly of me, dear." Emiko said modestly with a small shy smile.

"It's really okay, I can handle it." Riku assured them. "Besides, Risa and Hiwatari-kun is coming, so just treat it as I'm cooking for my sister, okay?"

Kosuke and Emiko nodded in understanding and went away from the kitchen. Riku continued cooking while humming a soft tune. Suddenly, she felt a tug at her pants and looked down. Her face brightened at the sight of her eight-year-old son, who greatly resembled her and her husband, Daisuke. His face had the childish features of Daisuke and his hair inherited from Riku herself.

"What's wrong, Daichi?" Riku asked her son with concern.

"Can I go out and skateboard?" Daichi asked.

"Daichi," Riku said with a disapproving tone and bent to level her face to Daichi's, "You know that Aunt Risa and Uncle Satoshi are coming, don't you? They're your favourite relatives, and besides, we haven't been seeing each other for some time now, since they had been on a holiday again."

"I know, okaa-san, but it's just for a while." Daichi tried convincing Riku. "I'll be back in fifteen – no – ten minutes so please let me go skateboard for a while. Please?"

Riku finally gave in to Daichi's adorable little face and the hopeful glint in his eyes. She gave him permission for it and Daichi promised ever so earnestly that he'll return in time.

The red-haired boy took his skateboard quickly, bid goodbye to his mother and grandparents and ran out of the house. He skateboarded skillfully across town, admiring the views of the peaceful little town no matter how they flashed by so quickly.

He stopped at a fountain, taking a breather and splashed his face with the cooling water. Suddenly, he remembered his pact with his mother and wondered if ten minutes was up already. Quickly, he ran home. On the way, he felt as if he was missing something, and he remembered his skateboard.

With a heavy heart, he ran all the way back to the fountain with his little legs, hoping that the skateboard was still there. "I forgot this." Daichi said to himself as he climbed onto to retrieve his skateboard. Suddenly, he saw a dark purple stone in the fountain and picked it up, looking at it curiously.

"Sorry, that thing belongs to me." A kind voice asked from behind, prompting Daichi to turn around. He saw a boy around fourteen years old with amazingly spiky hair coloured red. "It's something important. Please give it back." He said politely to Daichi.

Daichi stared at the red-haired boy, whose expression suddenly became of a surprised one. He looked at the dark purple stone in his hands, and then narrowed his eyes at the stranger and said angrily, "No!"

He ran away quickly, hoping to get away from the stranger. He knew he was being naughty, but he was curious about the rock. Being a persistent boy, he wasn't going to give away something that he had found to a total stranger. Finders' keepers, Daichi reasoned with himself.

Getting onto his skateboard, Daichi skateboarded quickly across the streets of the town. "Hey, don't skate so fast!" Daichi heard a store tender shouting from behind him but he ignored the advice.

He reached home finally, hoping that he wasn't late. He placed his skateboard at the side of the doorway and ran inside with his shoes.

"Dai-chan! Dai-chan!" Daichi heard his grandmother calling.

"What, Grandma?" He replied.

"Don't call me Grandma, call me Emiko-san!" Emiko told Daichi with a pretended frown on her face. "Take off your shoes and place them neatly." She told her grandson.

"Hai." Daichi answered reluctantly as he stole a cookie from the tin and munched on it quickly and secretly.

"See, you left this lying around again." Daichi heard his grandmother commenting on his skateboard as she opened the door. He quickly drank a cup of water and then went out to the door, where Emiko stood. As he was getting his skateboard, he saw the red-haired stranger from before and immediately hid behind his grandmother.

"Um…" Daichi saw that the red-haired stranger wanted to confront him, but he softened later. "This kid picked up something very important of mine." Daichi heard him saying and he clutched on his grandmother's shirt.

"It's mine!" Daichi argued angrily.

Emiko kneeled down so that her eyes leveled with Daichi. With an gentle voice, she asked, "Daichi, what did you pick up?"

Reluctantly, the small red-haired boy reached for his pocket and felt the smooth texture with an uneven shape of the stone. He took it out and showed it to his grandmother.

"Ah, this is…" Emiko said in a shocked tone.

"If I don't bring that back with me, I won't be able to save important friends of mine." The red-haired stranger spoke up.

"Return it to him." Emiko told Daichi in a persuasive tone and a gentle voice.

"But…!" Daichi wanted to protest.

"This person won't lie to you." Emiko told Daichi. "Now, come on. Return it to him."

Daichi walked towards the red-haired stranger and placed the dark purple stone on his palm. "Thanks. I won't forget this." The red-haired stranger said, his hand covering his little one with a feeling of assurance. Daichi was surprised, and he smiled at him finally.

"Shouldn't you be going now?" Emiko told the red-haired stranger.

"I'm sorry." He replied, "I don't have much time; please excuse me."

"The fact that this child is here means that you'll make it safely back." Emiko said with a tone of assurance.

The stranger nodded his head and went off. Daichi looked confusingly at his grandmother and asked, "What's that about?"

"You'll understand someday, Daichi." Emiko told him, a smile lingering on her face.

When Daichi had put away his skateboard in his bedroom, he heard his mother calling him. "What is it, mamma?" He asked while running down to the kitchen.

"Please bring these bowls to the table." Riku requested. Daichi obediently took the bowls on the counter, his mother advising him to be careful from behind.

When he had placed the porcelain bowls on the table, the doorbell sounded. "Coming!" Daichi shouted and quickly ran to the door to receive the visitors.

"Hello, Dai-chan!" A lady with long brown hair exclaimed at the sight of the small red-haired boy.

"It seems you have grown taller." The blue-haired Satoshi said and ruffled with Daichi's hair. Daichi grew proud at the comment.

"Aunt Risa! Uncle Satoshi!" Daichi called out happily at the sight of his favourite relatives.

"Let's go in first," Daisuke suggested from behind, hidden in view by Risa and Satoshi.

They went into the house and Daichi waited for his father to take off his shoes. "Has Daichi been a good boy today?" Daisuke asked, patting his head lovingly.

"Yup!" Daichi responded cheerfully.

When Riku came out of the kitchen and saw Risa, she immediately flung her arms around her. The two sisters embraced each other, showing how much they missed each other. When the two sisters had pulled back from their embrace, Riku turned to face Satoshi and greeted Satoshi as well.

"Riku, is lunch ready?" Daisuke asked.

"The casserole is still in the oven." Riku said apologetically.

"That's okay!" Risa replied with a cheerful tone, "Let's give out presents first, shall we?" And Daichi jumped with gladness.

Souvenirs and presents filled the coffee table, and everyone, especially Daichi, widened their eyes at the pile Risa and Satoshi had brought back for them.

"This vase…" Emiko stared at the intricately designed vase handed to her by Satoshi.

"The design was come up by a famous artist. And the vase is of fine porcelain." Satoshi explained. "It's not any Hikari's work of art." He assured her.

"It doesn't matter anyhow." Emiko assured him and gave him an encouraging pat on the shoulder.

"I knew you like to cook, Riku." Risa told her sister and handed her a big cookbook with a hardcover. "So I bought you this!"

"Tha…thank you, Risa." Riku managed to say, sweat-dropping at the size of the huge book.

Daichi was already playing with his remote controlled toy car from Satoshi. He pressed each button on the remote control and watched the movement of the car with fascination. Suddenly, he came across a small bookshelf filled with books and photos. Daichi ignored it at first, but abruptly returned to the bookshelf when he saw something that caught his eye.

It was photo of his parents when they were younger, as well as everyone else. However, the boy in the photo with red hair caught his attention. He looked exactly like the stranger from before.

"Papa?" He muttered to himself.

Immediately, he grabbed the photo and brought it to the living room where all the adults were still chatting.

"It's a pity Miyu and Mio had emigrated elsewhere." Risa sighed.

"It can't be helped since it was an order from Miyu's boss." Riku said, "They'll only be gone for three years. I'm sure they'll be back after that."

"Mamma," Daichi called his mother, but somehow, all the adults turned their attention to him.

"Is this papa in the photo?" Daichi pointed to the photo he was holding onto.

"Of course it's your father. Why do you ask?" Riku said curiously.

"I saw a boy today who looks just like papa in this photo." Daichi told Riku with an innocent face. From a distance away, Emiko muttered, "Oh no."

"Um…Daichi, they're two completely different people." Emiko tried in the most convincing tone that she could come up with.

"Oh yeah, right." Kosuke backed her up after receiving a glare from Emiko. Soon, everyone played along, leading to a naïve Daichi who believed everyone. Suddenly, a soft chime of the oven sounded from the kitchen and Riku said quickly, "The casserole is ready. I'll go take it out." And then facing Daichi, she said in a motherly tone of voice, "Return the photo to where it belongs and wash your hands before coming to the table, okay?"

Daichi nodded obediently and went to the bookshelf to return the photo. Before going to wash his hands, he looked at the photo once more and smiled.

"I won't forget as well, papa."

* * *

Hajimari: That's the end, and what a long rollercoaster that was!

Riku: Thank you so much for sticking with us all this while.

Satoshi: I'm sure it must be a drag since Dark is always so meddlesome.

Dark: What the…!

Risa: God knows how much we're indebted to you readers.

Daisuke: And also, for those people who reviewed, thank you so much!

Mio: Even though I didn't appear in this last chapter (pouts), I'm glad to know some readers do like me.

Miyu: Even though I'm just an OC, I'm glad that those who reviewed actually said they like me. So thanks a lot!

Everyone: (Bows) Domo arigatou gozaimasu!

Hajimari: Keep tuning in! I'm might return with a one-shot!

Dark: With me inside of course!

Hajimari: (Sweat-drop and in a defeated tone) Hai, hai.


End file.
